Shadowy Depths
by perseverance-n
Summary: With Fairy Tail disbanded, Lucy loses her family. Not easily trusting people, she's a changed person two years later. Independent in her own right, she ventures on her own. Jellal -ex-criminal- is seeking dark guilds as he wanders throughout Fiore in the shadows. He encounters Lucy during his mission. Both of them will form an unusual bond that might blossom into something more.
1. Prologue

**A/N:** It's another story idea for another anime I love and my first attempt at writing a Fairy Tail fanfiction. It's including two chapters: Prologue and the First Chapter. Hopefully, this is written with some justice toward an unusual but favorite pairing of mine: Jellal/Lucy.

Now, I am well aware that Jellal and Erza are the favorite Fairy Tail pair but Jellal is hot and Lucy is my favorite girl. I thought, hey why not try to write this paring? Well, enjoy.

This story takes place after season 2 episode 90.

 **Disclaimer:** Fairy Tail is not mine.

 **Warning:** Characters are ooc. There will be some lime in future chapters. Also, this fanfiction is a cannon divergence.

 _ **Please leave no flames.**_

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Lucy Heartfilia sat on a pile of rubble -the remains of Fairy Tail- with a broken heart. She had received a letter from Natsu and Happy revealing that they left on a journey to become stronger and wouldn't return for one year. Having no idea what to do, she ventured toward Fairy Tail with hopes of meeting the other members. She saw Master Makarov and another strange figure who wore the Magic Council outfit. The master had his pointer finger and thumb in the air to symbolize Fairy Tail. The stranger behind him stood shocked.

"From here on forth, Fairy Tail is disbanded," the old man said.

Had she heard him correctly?

That was how she found herself seated on a large rock, looking forlorn. Master Makarov stood in front of her, trying his best to console her.

"You have to understand that in this battle people need time to heal," he said. He wasn't sure if the tragically struck blond was digesting the information well with her body hunched over, her head in her hands.

"No." She slightly shook her head in denial. "Fairy Tail always sticks together no matter what. That's what makes us strong; being a family."

"It does, but after what happened our family needs time to heal."

"They do but that's what rebuilding Fairy Tail is all about, right?" The girl peered at him through the gaps of her fingers. He could see a fragile light of hope in her dark brown eyes. He wanted to find the right words, to keep the hope alive but he wasn't one to lie bluntly to his children. In fact, he didn't want to put his children through another hell like Tartaros.

"Unfortunately..." As soon as the word left his mouth, he noticed it. The light in her eyes dimmed into shadows. She collapsed onto her knees on the dirty ground and began sobbing.

Through the sobs and him awkwardly trying to comfort her, the blond shakily handed him a wrinkled envelope. Retrieving it from her trembling fingers, he opened it and his eyebrows tugged together on his wrinkly face at the sloppy written content. Now, he understood why Lucy felt the way she did. Natsu and Happy left on a journey without her. He knew Erza and Gray went separate ways to face their own demons.

Fairy Tail was healing but it meant that the family had to divide.

And Lucy was left alone.

"Child," he said as he referred all the members of Fairy Tail as his own children. He gently grabbed her right hand, stilling her. "Fairy Tail will always be family and no matter how many miles apart we are that family bond can't be broken." He lifted her right hand, finally getting her attention, he showed her the back of it where the pink Fairy Tail sign was tattooed on her skin. "And this emblem is what connects us. As long as you have it, Fairy Tail is still alive."

The girl nodded her head as tears streamed down her cheeks. The little spark emerged in her beautiful eyes. Lucy, although still a fairly new member, was the light of Fairy Tail.

The master stayed with her until she felt better. She wasn't aware how much time she spent weeping her heart out but she knew they would have to return home and at some point she would have to face reality.

"Are you going to be okay?" the old man asked her.

Giving him a shaky smile, she answered, "I'm not right now..." She didn't need to continue. He got the message.

Master Makarov placed his hand on her shoulder.

She lightly placed her hand on his one. "But don't worry about me."

That was Lucy of Fairy Tail. Compassionate and kind.

Her problems were second when it came to the well-being of others.

His eyes shut as he pinched the bridge of his tender nose. He wanted to stay behind to make sure she was alright but judging from her intelligence, he'd expect within time she would come to see why he disbanded Fairy Tail.

"I have to go," he said with sorrow. He removed the other appendage from her shoulder and clasped both of his hands behind him.

She nodded her head again, afraid to speak. He backed up slowly, measuring each step while watching her. Then his little form vanished, leaving her alone with the remains of Fairy Tail.

Like her, the pieces were broken.

And things that were shattered were hard to piece together again.

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 **A/N:** Before thinking of hitting that return button, give the next chapter a read.


	2. Chapter 1

Lucy laid on the soft bed in the room she rented for the night. It was a total luxury compared to sleeping under the stars. She, again, was forced to be the strong and independent woman, one that had to use her mind more than anything else as it was the only way to make quick money. The past couple of years, since the disbandment of Fairy Tail, took away her dreams of what life could have been and now she was forced to make ends meet.

Instead of being with a family, she was alone.

Natsu, the fire dragon slayer and her one-time partner, took her to Fairy Tail. He was the reason she was alive. His overwhelming strength saved her from enemies that could have easily snuffed the life out her. From those tough times he protected her, she thought she loved him.

But as she stared at the peeling ceiling of white crusted with black mold, she knew she had been naïve. She had spent years opening herself to people, blindingly trusting them, only to find out it was all for nothing. Her friends, once she called family, abandoned her. Her parents were long gone and she was left to fend for herself.

Now, she was laying on a soft mattress rather than a hard ground. Her blond hair, a halo around her as her fingers splayed out on the smooth surface of the bed sheets. At least she didn't have to worry about critters crawling all over her while she slept. That kept her itch free for one night.

However, tomorrow she had to look for another place to crash. With no apartment, no furniture, no friends, she had nothing to tie her down. And because there wasn't anything holding her back, she been in more places than she could count. Some included Clover Town, Cedar, Crocus, and Shirotsume Town.

Perhaps she could stay one more day in Crocus, explore the place as she never fully got the chance to experience it since the Grand Magic Games two years ago had too many dangerous events. The big town was getting crowded by the day. The new arrival of the previous magical guilds promised one hell of a year. Fairy Tail, Sabertooth, Lamia Scale, and Blue Pegasus were going to participate. But Lucy had to be out of the bustling town before they arrived. The dragon slayers had good noses and her scent was one thing she couldn't change. Natsu and Gajeel would be the ones to sniff her out.

That meant she had three days to spare before their arrival. According to the Sorcerer Magazine, there was going to be a huge festival for Fairy Tail's revival. The Grand Magic Games the previous year was a bore without their involvement.

Lucy expected the streets to be crowded but at the same time she didn't mind the distraction. One would be astonished how she was able to blend easily with a group of people compared to being on a street with one or two of them. It was better to be right under their noses because no one was expecting her to be out in the open. That was how she discovered the job advertisement on the bulletin for her whereabouts. Apparently, Fairy Tail was searching for her and they were willing to pay handsomely for her return.

Her lips stretched across her face, amusement flashing in her dark eyes. There was no way in hell she was returning to a guild that abandoned her. All that talk about family was a line of bull!

At least she could say she learned not to trust people. She lifted her fingers and with her pointers and thumbs she created a triangle. The three-sided shape represented her world. Whatever her one eye could see, she stuck with it. Objects, she could handle. Living things on the other hand, she ignored them.

Just then she heard a noise and quickly, she sat up on the bed. Her eyes darted to the window and then the door. Outside, the sun had retired for the day. The room she rented was quiet and still. The lamp on the nightstand was the only thing on. She scooted off the bed and moved to the direction of the noise. Just beyond the door, travelers moved to and from their cheap rooms. But Lucy knew from experience that one could never be too careful. The job ad made watchers more observant and with Lucy's blond hair, brown eyes, and a busty build, she would still be noticeable.

Slightly shaking her head, she went to her backpack with only a few essential items she carried with her. Her hand brushed across cold metal and she sighed in relief. Her keys were her most treasured items. They reassured her that everything was going to be okay. If alerted of danger she could mentally call for Loke or Capricorn. Either one of her spirits would come instantly to her aid.

She zipped up her bag while grabbing her keys and she shoved them into her pants pocket. She had gotten a smaller key ring to fit her fourteen keys. Aquarius' key, she liked to keep that close to her at all times. She wore a golden chain with the key as a pendant to be a constant reminder of what she sacrificed.

Nothing, now, could return her dear friend to her.

She inhaled a deep breath while putting a fist to her mouth. Slowly, she exhaled as she tried to control the guilt that swamped her.

She wasn't perfect. She betrayed her keys, she turned her back on her dearest friend.

Lucy wasn't going to make the same mistake again.

Resting her arm at her side, the blond picked up her bag from the bed to toss it on the wooden floor next to the bed stand. Just because she found herself in luxury tonight didn't mean she was going to get comfortable. Wearing a long baggy sleeve white shirt that fell to her rounded hips and dark blue skinny jeans, she was going to sleep fully clothed. Call her paranoid, but if someone tried to break in while she was sleeping, she could quickly jump out of bed, grab her bag and toss herself out of the window. Aries' wool would be waiting to greet her at the bottom of her fall.

Tossing herself on the bed, she bounced a bit. She breathed in air into her lungs before closing her eyes.

There was another sound toward the door area. Eyes snapping open, Lucy dove out of bed and reached for her bookbag. Grabbing a handle, she lugged the bag on her back before she mentally called for one of her trustworthy spirits. Aries already got an image of what the blond wanted. She opened the window, climbed over the sill and let herself fall out into the open the air.

The cold wind crashed against her cheeks, disheveling her hair further. Her rear-end was the first to hit the many stacks of feathery wool. Next was her back and legs and before she knew it, her body was heaving air heavily into her lungs.

Her spirit, Aries, stood at the side. The pink haired spirit bowed while she apologized. If anyone should apologize it should be Lucy. Instead, Lucy flashed her a small smile before standing up on wobbly legs. Already there were spectators on the scene. Some guys moved to help her but she raised her hand to stop them. Then one of her hands patted her bottom while the other was shoved recklessly into her unkempt hair.

Aries flashed out of sight, giving her a piece of mind. The blond grabbed her bag, which had fallen from her shoulder during her way down. She put it on and swiftly made her way through the crowd. A hand unzipped the small pocket of her bag where she dug for a hair tie. Hazardously, she grabbed sides of her hair and secured it in a ponytail.

She could still feel eyes on her while she strolled down the street. Cursing inwardly for being noticed, she rezipped her bag and turned a corner. The alleyway was dark, dirty and reeked of urine. She could return into the open, risk danger while she planned a way out or she could make her way through the alleyway and lose whoever was watching her. Her foot hit a glass bottle, causing it to roll noisily on the floor.

"Shoot!"

A same sound came from behind her. When she turned around to look, there was nobody around.

Turning and picking up her pace a little more, she tried to occupy her mind. Her distress would only alert Loke or Virgo and she didn't want to have to needlessly summon them. She remembered when she saw how Crocus was rebuilt from the last time she and the other Fairy Tail members saved the town, her heart was light, her pulse pounding with adrenaline and excitement. She couldn't wipe the eagerness off her face with the prospect of being one of the mages on the list of names for the memorial of the Grand Magic Stadium. The memorial commemorated a difficult but well-earned victory to save Crocus.

However, a day later, she returned to the sight and it didn't hold her interest anymore. She sat down on the steps staring at it, unseeing. Instead, the days when she worked hard with Team Natsu to be someone significant but failed at it filled her mind. She remembered being tortured and humiliated by Flare and Minerva during the Grand Magic Games. There was also the time when Fairy Tail was facing the dragons, Lucy was naked and was soaring vulnerably through the air in hopes someone would catch her.

Those days depending on others no longer existed.

The only ones she trusted were her spirits.

She craned her neck over her shoulder to where she'd come from, trying to see if someone was following her. She couldn't see anything but the dark sky, the new moon, and the poorly lit streetlights. She felt the cool breeze hit her face and smelled the rotting garbage in the air. She hugged herself as she reminded herself that she was almost at the other end of the alleyway.

Maybe there was a journalist following her? They could be just as resourceful as mages. They followed, photographed and questioned people. Once upon a time, she wanted the Sorcerer Magazine to interview her when she joined Fairy Tail. But now, those days were just her living on a whim. She wanted to be recognized like the other members of Fairy Tail. But in the end, she wasn't strong like them. She wasn't special.

She'd been hurt, so hurt, that she slammed Team Natsu out of her apartment when she realized that she could never be special. She would have to spend years training the way Erza, Natsu and Gray did and by the time she caught up with them, they would far succeed her. It was hopeless.

But it didn't stop her from trying. After spending a few months in Magnolia, Lucy made a personal request to Loke to speak directly to the Celestial King. She wanted to see if there was an alternative route for her to get stronger as a celestial mage. To her utter shock there was one; however, it meant that she had to disappear for some time in the celestial world. She accepted and went there to spend severe time training with Loke, Capricorn and Virgo. The food and clothes granted her access to that world but with time her body began to change. The Celestial King warned her that if she chose to spend more time in their world, the changes in her body would be disastrous to her health. So she tried her best to train with whatever time she was given. At least not to the point she was dying.

The end of the alleyway was in reach. Looking around her, she felt relieved that she hit the main pathway of town. Already, there streets appeared to be empty, signifying the late night. The wood of the planks beneath her feet creaked. She could barely see the lights ahead of her, causing her to stumble. She must be really tired.

A floor board creaked behind her causing her to still. Was someone following her?

Fear started vibrating throughout her entire body. Her hands shook as she held onto her backpack, and her breaths was coming in quick bursts. She felt like running, but didn't want to seem like a crazy woman who was running and screaming from a small noise.

When she reached the clearing of the first brightly lit streetlight and her feet were in view, she started to relax. But the feeling of safety was a disguise as suddenly a black bag was tossed over her head and she was grabbed by several large hands.

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 **A/N:** Now for curiosity sake, what do you think? Like it, no? Comments are welcomed. :)


	3. Chapter 2

**A/N:** Thank you for your kind reviews and your support. Honestly, I didn't think Jellal/Lucy pairing would be accepted since it's not a popular pairing but the support this story is receiving shows me you're willing to give it a chance. Happy reading and if you like what you read, please leave a comment. Thanks.

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There had been another report of dark guild members roaming the streets at night in Crocus or so was the news Jellal got from a reliable source. He had been walking the streets, careful to keep within the shadows. He noticed how the streets were becoming less crowded as the sun began to disappear behind some tall buildings.

Three days from now there was going to be a large Fairy Tail festive. The royal family insisted on a big celebration since their revival. A small smile displayed on his thin lips. Erza had invited him to join the others for the party now that he no longer had to disguise himself as Mystogan of Fairy Tail. He and the others in Crime Sorciere had infiltrated a dark guild that was closely associated with Zeref and in the process the Magic Council pardoned them for nabbing vicious mages that could rival the members of Tartaros.

Now, that he had his freedom, the ex-criminal was uncertain what to do so he continued with his original plan, to seek out dark guilds. The other members of Crime Sorciere decided to keep up with their duties, feeling that they still hadn't atoned enough for their indiscretion in misuse of power. He felt the same so he kept close tabs with Fairy Tail and in the shadows, he apprehended dark mages for misusing their power.

In this instance, he was on a solo-mission, looking for a group of males who attacked women at night for fun. Jellal better hurry and take care of the nuisance before the Grand Magic Games. Many tourists were traveling from afar to see the games and it wouldn't do to have many female tourists missing during the events.

He spent the rest of the night walking around the bustling town when he felt a strange magical aura. It tickled his skin, causing him to be aware of another mage, one that felt slightly familiar but at the same time there was something off about the magic. Jellal moved into the shadows of the buildings, distancing himself from the streetlights as he watched a small form careening from the sky. Another feminine figure -with pink hair- popped out of nowhere instantly creating piles of wool on the ground. The blond figure slammed into it, her body heaving for air before staggering to her feet.

The pink haired woman bowed as she apologized while the blond quickly smiled at her and then the strange woman vanished along with the wool. The magic was similar to what he had witnessed during the Grand Magic Games. The blond was a celestial mage with the ability to summon celestial spirits. Besides Yukino from Sabertooth, there was one other person with the ability to summon spirits but she disappeared a while back.

If she was the one Fairy Tail was looking for, he better keep his eyes on her. So he followed her from a distance, instantly noting that she must have detected his presence because she seemed flighty. She turned into the direction of an alleyway, which was considered a dangerous move. At least with people around, she had a fighting chance to get away but in a secluded area, she made herself more vulnerable unless she wanted to draw him away from bystanders.

Perhaps she had spotted him several times as he remained in the shadows. His dark clothing helped him to camouflage with his surroundings as he wore all black but she did turn back a couple of times. She even glanced his way at times as though she sensed him but he wasn't going to confront her. He was one to scope out his environment before interaction. Erza had warned him that the celestial mage didn't want to be found. He remembered when Fairy Tail was getting back on its feet, he had decided to contact Erza directly using the compact communications lacrima.

"Jellal," the scarlet haired woman said with shock evident in her tone.

"It's been awhile, Erza," Jellal greeted. The compact communications lacrima was convenient to carry around, however, unlike the communications lacrima crystal, he couldn't see who he was conversing with.

There was a moment of silence.

"Erza?" He knew his friend at times got shy around him.

"Uh, sorry, it's just that this is unexpected."

"As it's unexpected of me to hear about the return of Fairy Tail."

She laughed and it was good to hear it coming from her. The last time they met, she had a defeated expression on her face from the Tartaros battle. No one as fierce as Erza the Titania should look downfallen from a fight. "Yeah, I didn't see it coming too until Natsu and Happy dragged me back here to the building."

"The building?" He was astonished.

As if she sensed his expression, she explained. "Astoundingly, the guild had been reconstructed after the old building. Natsu and Happy found it that way after they came back to Magnolia and they went on a mission to look for everyone else from Fairy Tail. They went as far as to make me the new master of Fairy Tail."

His lips tugged upward on the corner of his face. "You? The master of Fairy Tail?"

"What are you trying to say? I'm not cut out for the job?"

"Knowing Fairy Tail's previous record for disasters, you have a lot set out for you."

The woman exhaled. "I know and it isn't easy since Gray came back. Him and Natsu are bickering like children and with all the paperwork that keeps piling on my desk, I don't know how Master Makarov dealt with it."

"Being a magical guild master isn't easy," he remarked.

"Yeah, you know it well with you being a guild master and all."

His smile turned into a grin. He could imagine Erza taking out her sword and threatening the lively bunch of Fairy Tail members to stop destroying the place.

"Don't you have any advice to give?"

"Not really, you'll do just fine."

"Well, uh, thank you."

He noticed that she talked about Gray and Natsu but she didn't mention the blond woman she usually hung out with from her team.

Curious for some reason, he brought it up. "Did you get back everyone who were originally in the guild?"

He heard a sound from the other end of compact communications lacrima, almost as though his friend was hesitating on answering. "No," she said after some silence. "We can't find everyone and some of those we found, we're still trying to convince them to return to us."

"How about the blond one from your team?"

"Why do you ask about Lucy?" the woman questioned suddenly.

It was his turn to hesitate. Why did he ask about her? Perhaps, it was because he did notice her. To him, she was always there, ready to support her members the best way she could. In the Tower of Heaven incident, he witnessed her and a blue haired woman successfully completed a unison raid on their first try. Ever since then, the blond, he viewed had great potential, seeming that her magic was diversified.

"Jellal?"

"You didn't mention her," he honestly responded back.

"Oh, I was that obvious."

Gathering from her reaction, there was one missing person for sure.

He didn't reply.

"It's just strange."

"What's strange?"

"Lucy has disappeared."

"Disappeared?" He frowned. That didn't sound like Erza's friend or at least how she described her.

"Some volunteers at Fairy Tail went around Magnolia, questioning people. Amazingly, they said she stayed a few months after Fairy Tail was disbanded."

"It does sound strange that she stayed a few months and then she vanishes."

"There's more," Eza confessed.

"What kind of more?"

"Well, she took odd end jobs to make enough money to rebuild the Fairy Tail building, even working as the mayor's representative. Once the repairs were completed, she went as far as to get paperwork from the Magic Council to re-open Fairy Tail. According to the original paperwork, she was suppose to be the guild master since she is solely responsible for the reconstruction."

To say he was shocked was an understatement.

"We posted a job in the other magical guilds. Anyone who knows her whereabouts or can return her to Fairy Tail will get a large reward."

"That's a clever idea to bring her back," he complimented.

She stuttered a bit on the other end making him chuckle and then their conversation turned serious. "I can't help but get this feeling that she doesn't want to come back. Why else did she vanish?"

Erza asked him a good question that he couldn't answer. He didn't know the blond named Lucy as well as his friend did but if the rumors about her kindness and selfness were true, it was out of character for her to simply leave Magnolia without a trace.

But now she was wandering around Crocus and she wasn't that far ahead of him. He took the time to examine her from a distance. She wore modest clothing compared to the times he encountered her. She wore a long baggy white sleeve t-shirt, tight jeans, and white sneakers that had seen better days. She clutched a backpack tightly as she made her way through the alley. Her blond hair grew much longer, reaching her hips but as she tied it into a loose ponytail, her hair reached midback.

The way she walked, however, he could recognize that she desired to be alone. Something must have happened the past two years to change her. She seemed more aloof, precarious and he couldn't think of another way to describe her without getting to know her. But he could identify some of her traits since he acted that way the first year he was labeled a criminal.

Another part of town was getting brighter and clearer. His sharp eyes noticed the sudden ease in her shoulders as her movements slowed from a hurried state. And then he heard something. He listened as two men approached slowly, whispering as they eyed her form. They have to be the ones he was looking for, as he took in their dark clothes baggy clothes. He could sense an underlying amount of magic buzzing under their skin, a dark type with menacing intentions.

In an instant, they attacked, throwing a bag over the smaller blond and pulling her struggling form toward them. Their leers echoed through the silent streets. Jellal knew he had to react to save her life but it also meant revealing himself to her.

OoO

The bag covering her head and suppressing her need to breathe properly smelled like rotten potatoes. The hands were rough as they molested her. Lucy's mouth opened but was met with cobwebs and dust. She closed it instantly, choosing to kick out blindly at her assailants. She was satisfied when she heard a loud grunt as her foot connected with something solid.

Her satisfaction, however, was brief. She was thrown down roughly on the ground when she landed on her backpack, her head snapped back hitting wood. She could taste blood in her mouth. Leers burst out around her until she felt someone sitting on her chest, pressing down hard enough to constrict her breathing. Her hands were yanked above her head while someone gathered her feet. Something was being used to restrain her hands and with renewed energy, she kicked both of her legs, knowing that someone else was going to tie her feet.

A cold metal dug into wrists as she heard a click sliding in place. Her eyes widened. Her body stilled. She would've fought better if she could see her opponents but they chose to play dirty. And doing such a thing, Lucy knew she was going to return the favor.

Immediately shutting her eyes due to the grit getting into them and making them tear up, she forced her body to freeze. Despite stiffening her muscles and struggling to breathe, she could still hear her heart beat so loud and hard that she could hear it in her ears.

She interlaced her fingers, her teeth grinding together as she mentally called on Virgo.

Suddenly the man's weight was lifted from her and her hands were freed from above her head. She could hear grunting and shouting, but didn't pause to find out the situation. The rattling from chains calmed her as she removed the bag from her head with cuffed hands. She tossed it on the ground. Sitting down, she worked of untying a rope around her legs.

Virgo was kicking out at one of the larger men. The other one was immobile due to the chains. He was caught completely off guard that he and his friend attacked a celestial mage. With the other man down, Virgo wrapped her chain around him.

"Punishment, princess?" the pinked haired spirit asked her.

"No. But could you please tie them with rope?"

"Whatever you wish," the maid replied.

"Thanks, and I'm sorry." She gave her spirit a saddened look. A part of her felt terrible that she had to summon her celestial spirit to save her.

"Don't worry about it, princess." The spirit tried to soothed her as she worked on what she was instructed to do, tying the men.

"Hey, bitch..." The man who attacked Lucy didn't get a chance to finish as Virgo covered his mouth with a cloth. The blond smiled at her spirit's thoughtfulness.

Just then, the hair at the nape of her stood on edge as two things happened. When Virgo reached to tie the other man up with rope, he broke free of the chains with some type of unknown magic. Eerie laughter pierced the night. He rose to his feet, dodging Virgo fists and spinning around with a kick of his own, the maid sailed through the air to crash into stacks of crates.

"Virgo!" Lucy called out, her cuffed hands stretching out to her wounded spirit.

"Run," the maid mouthed out to her. She felt another crawling sensation along her skin and realization was swift. There was another powerful mage nearby and the blond didn't want to have anything to do with the stranger.

She got up and started to run towards the lights.

She made it several feet when a scream tore through her. Strong arms came around her from behind, grabbing a hold of her shoulders. She didn't have time to think, she spun around and struck out. Catching another man off guard, she watched as he stepped back, holding his chin in his hands. Then he stared at her with darkest green eyes she had ever seen.

He looked familiar as she made out blue hair escaping from under his hood.

"J-Jellal?"

He recovered quickly and grabbed her hands, then started to pull her towards a darkened side of the street.

Out of everyone, she was never expecting to see Erza's love interest walking the streets of Crocus.

"Those men are incapable of doing any harm." As she digested his words, she felt through the magical link she had with her spirits and was cued that Virgo had returned to the celestial world. Calling upon her, the pink-haired female popped out again, bowing low, her chains making slight noises with her movement.

"Punishment, princess?" The maid asked again.

"No," the blond shook her head. "Are you okay?"

The pink-haired spirit nodded her head.

A reassuring smile replaced the worry on the celestial mage's face. "Good. Can you please take the men to the rightful authorities?"

"Yes, princess." The spirit didn't wait for any further instructions, she disappeared. Lucy didn't like to interact with other people unless it was necessary. Either Virgo or Loke were the ones who normally dealt with uncomfortable social situations for her.

Jellal, she observed, watched their exchange of words in silence. His face was devoid of emotion, making it hard for her to read him.

"Well, it's been good seeing you," she ended their silent communication. She was about to turn around and leave him when he grabbed her hand again and led her quickly down the alleyway. His movements were swift, causing her head to swim. It must have been the lack of oxygen from the earlier attack that made her feel like she couldn't focus on anything. They passed houses and entered the main part of Crocus. Here the buildings were taller and closer together, and the streets lit up the darkness.

She looked at Jellal as he continued to pull her down the street. His hood fell down, revealing his unruly blue hair. It had grown longer since the last time she saw him. She tugged on her hand, to feel his grip tightened on her wrist. Jellal was once a wizard saint, meaning he was very powerful in his own right. Lucy knew her magic was in no way in comparison to his own. Besides him being efficient in magic, he mastered fighting as she heard stories of Natsu's fight against the heavenly body mage.

She didn't have a fighting chance to get away from him so she let him lead the way.

Finally, they had gone over a few more blocks, and she pulled her hand free to notice the cuffs were still in place.

"Shoot!" She would have to summon Virgo again or perhaps, Capricorn could break the chain between her wrists. Or she could deal with the cool silver metal encasing her wrists for one more day.

She glanced up at him again. "Why?"

He stared at her silently and Lucy found herself inhaling a breath.

She tried again. "Why are you here in Crocus?"

"I saved you from men who were part of a dark guild," he answered with a straight face.

"Those men were part of a dark guild?" There was one time when she headed to a money guild, "Love and Lucky," her father joined to save his life. She single-handily took down members from a dark guild.

"You did well handling them," he complimented.

"No," she disagreed with him. "My spirit did a good job fighting them."

His response was his lifted eyebrows.

"Great, just great. Another awkwardly social person like myself." She blinked her eyes before frantically pulling at her wrists. She hated to admit it, but she felt vulnerable being in a presence of another powerful magical person. She just wanted to get away from Jellal.

He grabbed her wrists and quickly unlocked the handcuffs with the key, then dropped them and the key on the ground. "The handcuffs are magically bind to suck a person's magic."

Lucy wiped her face of the dirt. She felt dirty and was beginning to feel the effects of shock settling in her body. Her mind was fuzzy and her breaths were still shaky as though she ran ten miles without rest.

"I'm surprised you still have magic in you," he assessed. She glared or tried to glare at him. Did he think of her as a weakling? Okay, she wasn't a strong combatant fighter like Team Natsu but she made up for it with her mental magical capacity. It was what she spent her last two years severely training on.

Turning her attention from him to the ground, she walked over to retrieve the key and cuffs. It might be a good idea to hold on to them, although they did remind her how she was almost kidnapped.

"Leave them," Jellal ordered. He reached for her hand again. How many times was he going to hold her hand like they knew each other well?

She pulled her hand out of his warm fingers. "I'm not going anywhere with you. I did fine without you and I'll continue doing so."

He slightly shook his head. "As it is, there's nowhere available to sleep unless you plan on sleeping on the streets and risking the chance of being attacked again."

He had a point, but she was too stubborn to admit it. She did fine being on her own so far. Besides, he might want to send her back to Fairy Tail and she didn't want to return to the guild that talked so highly about family when it was all fake.

She dumped the key and handcuffs and held her hands up in the air. "I say we part ways."

With her opinion said, she turned around to walk away from him. Only, he wasn't heading away from her. He was moving in her direction. She craned her neck over her shoulder and frowned at him. "What part of separating don't you understand?"

She could have sworn there was a smile on his face. It was then she got a good look at him. Surreptitiously, Lucy always found Jellal strikingly handsome with his unruly blue hair, the sharp angles of his face and his quietness. In fact, he was one of her top ten for her boyfriend list. But seeing him up close made her heart skip a beat, he seemed more dangerous and mysterious looking.

Her eyelashes drifted downward. Her mind was probably going crazy from not being close to people. She slightly shook her head when her gaze drunk in what he was wearing. His black jeans hung low on his hips. His black jacket had sand on it. He had a dark pair of shoes on. Basically, his whole attire consisted of black, which she found was strange.

"Why are you dressed in black?" she asked him while finally finding the courage to turn and face him.

"I was on a mission," he answered simply. "I wanted to blend in."

He certainly did blend in with the shadows, however, under the streetlights his striking look did cause people to turn and stare at him.

"Look, you're welcome to stay but only for a moment. When things settle down, we're going our own ways," she said as she showed him her back. Her gesture was meant to be a temporary truce -a simple way of giving a little trust- but little did she know that it was the first step for letting someone into her life again.

OoO

Jellal watched her quietly as she walked in front of him. She showed him her back and being with his guild since his escape from the Magic Council, Lucy's action was saying that she trusted him. He just didn't know if she acknowledged it.

"Hey, that cart over there is open!" the blond exclaimed. There was a cart under a bright streetlight that was still open. A few customers sat on chairs around the cart.

He couldn't help but smile at her reaction. Erza did mention that Lucy loved shopping.

She dashed over to it to see what the seller had in the menu. Instantly, she ordered two cups of black coffee and two donuts.

"It's on me," he declared as his hand dove into his pocket and took out the money to pay for their food.

"No, I ordered it so it's on me."

Without waiting for her to retrieve her money, he gave the seller his money. "Next time you pay."

Frustration was evident on her face. "If there's going to be a next time," she muttered. Scowling, she took her coffee and donut to an empty chair. She placed her items on the seat before removing her backpack and putting the bag on the floor. Then she picked up her snack and drink and sat down. Jellal sat down with his food on an empty chair next to her.

Before she could pick up her donut, she stared suspiciously at him. "After we eat, we separate."

Jellal simply looked at her without answering.

"I mean it."

Again, he didn't say a word.

She just sighed. He couldn't help but smile again when she bit into her donut. Her eyes widened as pure joy brightened her facial features. Then she looked at him, displaying the same happiness. Perhaps he wasn't going to have any problems getting along with her.


	4. Chapter 3

**A/N** : Wow, thanks for all the wonderful reviews, favorites and follows. But the reviews, the feedback I'm getting amazes me. I'm happy to know that there are supporters for this pairing, especially since many of you, which I completely agree, says there are not much stories focusing on Jellal/Lucy. I guess that's why I'm cracking a story with this unusual pairing. Hope you like and please, I appreciate your support. :)

* * *

Food had a way of perking up people. It was a strategy Erza noticed and revealed to him. She used the method on Natsu and Gray since both teammates were gullible but not Lucy. The celestial mage seemed immune to food. Jellal recalled one of Erza's adventures she shared with him. Team Natsu were traveling through a desert when hunger started irritating them. They had stumbled into a monster and imagined ways of eating it once they killed it. Lucy was the only one unaffected by starvation.

But watching the blond enjoy her little snack, he couldn't think otherwise. Food rejuvenated her into good spirits; she was no longer giving him suspicious looks or talking about separating ways.

"So," she started after finishing her donut, "What are you going to do after you accomplished your mission?"

He shrugged his shoulders. "I haven't put much thought into my next move."

She stopped talking to him, lost in her thoughts. He took the time to bite his donut and sip his bland black coffee.

"I'm going to get the point," she eventually said.

"Lucy," he said. Somehow, he could read her out. Fairy Tail was coming into Crocus for the Grand Magic Games and she must be wondering if he was going to detain her until then.

"I'm not returning to Fairy Tail," she replied bluntly.

The heavenly body mage blinked at her. He wasn't expecting her to be so straightforward.

"Not after…." She turned her head away from him. "Why are you here?"

"I told you I was here for the dark guild."

"So, you're not here for the Grand Magic Games?" she asked while moving her head to look at him once more.

Looking into her brown eyes, he saw the hurt she tried to mask from him.

"Lucy-." He paused. What was he going to tell her exactly? He had to stay in Crocus to contact Erza about the dark guild. She was the one who tipped him on the missing tourists.

Suddenly, there was a loud pop and people began screaming. The place became chaotic and before Jellal knew what he was doing, he grabbed the celestial mage's arm. Lucy yelled out something, which went unheard but he saw a flash of light and felt the buzz of magic in the air. And then the light faded. The heavenly mage rushed them down an alleyway.

They continued to run down the streets. Each one started to look alike but he had scouted the place during daylight hours and memorized the street names. Even with his eyes closed, he knew he was heading in the right direction. They needed to get out of the streets as soon as possible. The best place to remain unnoticed for the night was in the forest.

He glanced at her, seeing the wariness in her eyes. She looked over her shoulder, acting like they were being chased. Perhaps the dark guild members had friends that Jellal somehow missed.

"Who-?" she began asking. He put a finger to her lips, hoping the action would quiet her.

A bunch of footsteps thumped from behind them and Jellal realized they weren't going to make it into the forest. Quickly, he scanned his surroundings, viewing a darkened part of the alleyway. He pulled her into him and twisted their bodies so that her back hit the wall. They were both breathing hard as he felt the heat from her smaller frame against him. He could control his breathing, but he was unable to tell if Lucy could too. He placed a larger hand over her face.

"Lucy," he breathed. "Shh."

All they were left to do was wait for the threat to pass them.

OoO

The night couldn't get worse, right?

When Lucy could have been sleeping on a soft mattress, she found herself in the company of her former teammate's friend and they were running from the unknown.

And to make it worst, the one she was fleeing with was the person she had a crush on but for Erza's sake, she bottled the emotion and focused all of her attention on her partner Natsu.

Now looking up at Jellal, she could barely make out the way his neck craned over his shoulder. He held very still and his breathing was controlled, unlike hers. Trying to distract herself, her eyes shifted to what she could make out beyond him. In the cover of darkness, she made out the brightness from the other streetlights. Even with Jellal shielding her with his hard body, she felt exposed.

"Close your eyes," he murmured.

Heeding his advice, her eyes shut. The shuffling of footsteps moved past them and the tenseness in her body faded.

"It's not over yet. They may come back."

She was too tired to care. Exhaustion from the day crashed into her. She would have sunk onto the floor if Jellal's harder body didn't press onto her so tightly.

"Can you remain quiet?" he asked.

She nodded under his hand. When he pulled the appendage away from her face, she inhaled a deep breath of cold air. The appendage moved onto her shoulder. His larger frame remained rigid. What felt like an eternity, he started to relax. His stance and breathing changed and he removed his hand from her shoulder as a gesture to let her know that the danger pass. She instantly missed its warmth.

Holding still, she realized she gripped the fabric of his jacket tightly in her hands. Instead of letting go, she opened her eyes and looked up at his face. She could barely make out his facial features but she knew he was handsome. He was always good-looking, especially when his thin lips curved into one of his rare smiles. And she loved it best when he smirked. A shiver went down her spine. Now was not the time to be thinking such thoughts.

"Do you think you can walk further?" he whispered. His breath fanned across her face. She licked her suddenly dry lips.

She shook her head as an answer and then realized that he probably couldn't see her. "No."

He pulled away from her, leaving her breathless.

She heard an intake of air. "Then we have no choice. We're going to sleep here tonight."

"What?"

"You heard just right. We're going to sleep here."

Lucy looked into the darkness. She couldn't make out the ground, but Mavis knew what was there. She slept outside many times before, the forest, under a beach, in an abandoned house, and some had been uncomfortable to a point that she woke up to looking worse than the day before. But she never slept in an alleyway, out in the open where there was filth.

"Listen Lucy." His voice sounded below hers and she found herself glancing at the ground to only frown. She couldn't see him. "Whatever happened back there was a warning. Those, whoever they are, are after us and they will continue their search everywhere. At least out here, we'll know when to run."

"Who are they, you have to know?" She stood there waiting for answers.

"I'm not sure."

"So we're seriously left in the dark?" She felt dumb and hated herself for it.

"No."

"Yes!" she huffed in exasperation. "We can't just part ways? They're after you."

"They saw us together."

That was all he had to say and Lucy lowered herself to the ground. "Dammit, I can't use magic to call Aries for a bed of some kind," she muttered. She was magically exhausted and annoyed that she had to share the same space with some stranger, well, the guy who belonged to someone else.

Shaking her head, she recalled her unfortunate situations with the opposite sex. Yep, she had terrible luck. Natsu, although her partner, held absolutely no romantic feelings for her. She had seen the way he eyed Lisanna when the sweet girl returned to Fairy Tail. Lucy knew from then, that she was in for a losing battle. Gray, her friend, seemed protective over her but he always treated her like a sister. She once had a small crush on Gajeel, however, he always had a thing for Levy and Lucy would never betray her friend. She squashed that feeling. There was that date with a guy, but she turned him down to go a mission with Natsu and Happy. Who knew what Cana did with him?

And then there was the person sitting next to her. Jellal. She definitely had a soft spot for him but his closeness to Erza kept her distant and quiet. There was a spark between them and again, Lucy wouldn't feel right just interfering.

Besides, the celestial mage learned the past couple of years that she was better off on her own. The whole family, having someone to depend on, it wasn't worth it.

She shook her head and focused on the task. Sleep.

Something soft pressed against her face. "Huh?"

"Use it as a pillow or bed."

Had he taken her words seriously? The only ones who ever listened to her were her spirits.

"I know we just met and we have different agendas but we're running from something and that means we need to work together."

Why did he have to sound so logical?

"You sleep and I'll take the first watch."

She didn't want to give into him. Who knew what he had planned in that head, well, good-looking one of his.

"I figure I might be asking much, but you can put a little trust in me?"

"No," was her automatic response. It wasn't only to him. She gave that same response to other people, viewing that they would betray her at some point or leave her behind. She didn't want to grow attached to someone again. The pain it caused was unbearable.

"Please, Lucy."

Those words, she hadn't heard someone other than her spirits use kindness.

"Please." She didn't know if he was asking her to sleep or to trust him, but when her spirits used please to get her to cooperate, she gave in. And it was as if he had knowledge on how to get her to listen to him.

"Fine," she whispered.

She pushed herself all the way back until her back hit the wall. She used the soft fabric he gave her to cushion her head.

"You aren't going to lie down?"

"No."

For some reason, she could imagine his smile. Shoving the thought aside, she closed her eyes and smelled his scent. And as she began to drift into a sleep, a part of her relaxed feeling his vigil over her.

OoO

The issue dealing with Lucy was worse than he pondered. Clearly, the celestial mage endured something horrible to change her as much as he was seeing. The fact that she didn't trust him contrasted to a couple years ago when she forgave others who hurt her.

He noticed besides eating food, she didn't smile easily and she was wary of her surroundings.

What exactly was she hiding? Why didn't she want to return to Fairy Tail?

But most of all, he wanted to know the cause to her vast change?

He watched as her head began to loll to one side, her body softening as sleep overtook her. Unable to take the sight of her looking uncomfortable, he shifted himself until he was next to her. Gently using his hand, he guided her head on his shoulder.

He examined her earlier while she had a hard time making him out in the dark. Since using his heavenly powers to amplify his senses, he grew accustomed to having better senses than the average human. So he was able to make out her expressions and try to the best of his knowledge to get her to cooperate with him. Instantly, he was aware that he had to keep on an eye on her because if he looked the other way, she would bolt.

Her head moved a little on his shoulder, her smaller body nudging into his. A small smile formed on his lips. It had been a long time since someone found comfort in his presence. Even traveling with his guild, the members did their own things. They only got together to fight against common enemies.

She snuggled against him, her long blond hair falling over his chest. Looking down at her attire, he once remembered when she wore little clothing that left nothing to the imagination. Now her clothes looked worn and very comfortable. It covered most of her skin.

He shifted, careful not to wake her. Lucy persisted not to go back to Fairy Tail but if those thugs that were after them were affiliated with the dark guild, he would need some assistance. The mull left him in an indisposition.

He would have to make a choice when the time arose for it.

Until then he would respect her wishes because while she wouldn't admit it, she was placing her trust in him. And with the changes he observed from her, gaining her trust was a big deal.

Inhaling a breath, he closed his eyes to try to get some rest before sunbreak.


	5. Chapter 4

**A/N:** Hello dearest readers. I tried my best to get this out during the holidays. Well, it's not the end of the mini-vacation yet. Umm... I want to warn you all that this chapter is the longest one I ever wrote and there's slight lime. That's all and I wish everyone happy holidays. :)

Warning: Slight lime.

* * *

Lucy woke up to find herself laying out on the ground. Her head was pillowed by soft fabric. Immediately realizing she had slept in a filthy alleyway, she jolted up right. How could she let her guard down?

Burying her face in her hands, she couldn't believe she was getting soft again.

It was only one night. If she gathered her belongings and leave Jellal then everything could return to normal.

Liking the idea, she got up and swiped the dirt from her clothes.

"Good to see you awake," the heavenly body mage greeted her.

Looking up at him and blinking, she responded to him with a"huh?"

She didn't feel his magical aura and Lucy training in the celestial world made her sensitive to magic. Either he had to be good at concealing his presence or she was losing her magical touch.

"I didn't mean to startle you."

"What are you talking about?" she asked while waving her hand in the air. "You didn't shock me. I just had some..." She scratched the back of her head while fumbling for the right excuse. "I had a nightmare." She would never admit to him that he caught her off guard while she was awaking.

He shook his head, his lips spreading across his handsome face. Even in the morning he appeared striking. "Here, I got some food."

She glanced down at his hand, noticing for the first time that he was holding a brown bag. Again, how could she not have noticed a simple object in his hand?

He sat down on the ground cross-legged, not caring if his clothes got dirtied from the filth. He opened the bag on his lap and pulled out a bottle of water and two wrapped sandwiches. "I wasn't sure what you preferred but I got us some cream cheese bagels."

The thought of food had her stomach rumbling and mortifyingly she put a hand to her stomach. He just smiled at her and handed her the food. For once she willingly accepted his help. "Thank you."

"No problem," he said.

He began eating. She leaned against the wall, refusing to sit on the dirty floor. Unlike him, she wore brighter clothes and the filth showed on her attire. She unwrapped the paper around the bagel and took a bite. She refrained from making an exciting noise at the delicious taste. It was strange how she got to appreciate food. Lucy had always commented on how Natsu and Gray gobbled their food like their food was running away from them but she learned after severe training in the celestial world that food was an essential part to gaining a massive amount of energy. It depended on what a person ate.

For her, becoming sensitive to magic, Lucy had to eat sweets. She paused on her sixth bite while her eyes flickered to Jellal. To think that she might have a similar trait to Erza, the one whom the blue-haired male liked made her feel uncomfortable.

As if he felt her eyes on him, he glanced up at her and the blond instantly looked away.

"Are you not hungry?" he questioned.

She shook her head. "I was just wondering about your tattoo," she lied.

But since she could see him a lot clearer than last night, she didn't see his usual tattoo on his right eye.

"Magic concealer," he replied. "Don't want to attract the wrong attention." He ate the last of his bagel before popping open the water bottle. "Sorry I was only able to get one bottle of water. The commotion from last night caused the businesses to close early. This is all I could get."

Lucy would mind but Jellal went out of his way to provide them both with something to hold them over until lunch. "Thanks," was all she could say. She watched him hover the bottle over his mouth. The clear liquid flowed right into his mouth and not once did his lips touch the rim. A part of her wondered what would it be like to drink from the same water bottle as him, where both their lips touched the same surface; it would be like an indirect kiss. Her head moved side-to-side in a quick manner to shove the notion aside. Hopefully, he missed her red cheeks.

He put the cover on the bottle and handed it to her. "You can have the rest."

"Are you sure?"

He nodded. She took the bottle from him and finished eating her sandwich. When she drank the last of the water, she collected her garbage. "Here, give that to me."

"No, I can manage."

He showed her the brown bag. "I'll put them in here and throw this in the dumpster."

She bit her lip. Again, she felt like she was relying on him. "How about I throw it away?"

"I thought you would want to freshen up a bit," he answered her.

Was he trying to tell her that she wasn't pretty? Lucy frowned. As if realizing what he said, he panicked and the expression looked so cute but out of place on him. Who knew that the good looking Jellal could be adorable too?

Forgetting his earlier comment and knowing she must appear rumpled with her dirty clothes, messy hair and red eyes, she took him on his offer. She put the garbage in the bag he held out for her and watched as he turned his back to her. As his form got smaller in the distance, she mentally summoned her trustworthy key. There was a flash of bright light before a pink haired female became solid. The maid bowed to her mistress as the chains clanged with her movement.

"Punishment?"

"No," Lucy answered. "I was hoping you have a fresh change of clothes."

"Yes," the maid replied before bowing to her. Then the maid moved quickly, blurring to a point that the blond couldn't keep her in sight. When the maid's motion stopped, Lucy found herself wearing another pair of comfortable jeans with a long-sleeve blue matching shirt. Her long hair was tied into a knot on her head.

"Thank you," Lucy said to her spirit. "And I'm sorry." She lowered her head.

"Princess, there is no shame in calling me or the others. We are here for you."

"I know, it's just..." The celestial mage didn't want to abuse her power. If only she relied less on her spirits and more on herself, she wouldn't have lost a dear friend. And summoning her spirits made her feel like such an action might happen again.

"If you don't summon us, big brother will come," she responded lightly. But that response was an admonishment. Loke made it a habit to check on her daily. He claimed that what happened to Aquarius wasn't her fault but it clearly was. He and Virgo had warned her not to summon the mermaid in Tartaros and she did. Because of the incident, Lucy still didn't find the courage to look him in the eyes.

"You're right," she conceded.

"Also, here. Don't forget to take care of yourself or else," the pink-headed woman said. There was another flash before fading. In the spirit's waiting hands was a slice of pound cake on a plate with a fork.

Taking the utensil in hand, the celestial mage sliced a piece of cake and popped it into her mouth. She closed her eyes while she moaned in delight.

"Your magic isn't normal today."

"It has to be from the attack last night." Lucy sliced another piece of cake the maid held for her and ate it. This time she couldn't stop the goofy grin from spreading across her face.

"Big brother said that you were chased by some men." At the mention of Loke, her lion spirit, her expression turned sour.

"Does he have to know everything?" she grumbled to herself after she swallowed her food.

"He wasn't spying on you in particular. He felt your panic and tried to investigate."

"But he couldn't," she replied. "Not when I was running low on magic."

The maid nodded.

"Tell him thanks but I can fight my own battles."

"We know that you can, princess. We're only concerned."

Lucy smiled but the reaction didn't reach her eyes. Without warning, the spirit disappeared, leaving her to awkwardly face Jellal. "Umm... I don't think you met my spirit, Virgo."

"I've seen her around," he responded.

"Oh." Great, yesterday she was trying to get rid of him and today she was stuttering around him. Yet he still remained unfazed by everything around him.

"Are you ready to go?"

"Wait, what?"

"The sun is already up and we need to make sure those men aren't around to see us." He had a point.

Blinking at him, she noticed that his clothes were cleaner and his dark hair, although all over the place, still looked as if he passed a hairbrush through it. She wanted to question when he got ready but she would sound stupid. Instead, she opted for bending over to pick up his jacket. Seeing the state of it, she craned her neck over her shoulder and apologized to him.

"I'm sorry." She shook out the jacket as best as she could, trying to remove as much dust as possible, before neatly folding the material in her arms.

"Don't worry about it," he said. He stepped beside her and took the jacket from her arms. Feeling their hands touched, electricity buzzed her skin. She pulled the appendage back, retreating from him to create distance while clutching curled fingers to her chest.

"Lucy?" he questioned. His eyebrows tugged together.

"We should get going." Searching for a distraction, she turned her attention to the alleyway. They were alone. The men who seemed to be searching for them last night strangely didn't return.

She walked away from him, expecting him to follow her. The warm sun and the wonderful sounds of the town greeted her. She smelled freshly baked goods and saw people strolled past her. The town was coming to life. Removing her hand from her chest, she wiggled her fingers. What was the feeling -the zap- that she felt when her fingers touched his one?

She let out a long breath. The celestial mage had to get rid of him.

"Any destination in mind?" His voice meddled into her thoughts.

"Trying to get out of this town."

"Good idea," he said, easily catching up to her.

Lucy blinked her eyes. "Excuse me."

"Keeping a low profile is the best option we have."

"But that means getting away from Crocus. Didn't you want to stay here for Fairy Tail?"

"I came here to complete a mission, Lucy."

"And it seems to have extended into a bigger one because of what happened last night."

All of a sudden, Jellal pulled her to a stop and yanked her arm hard enough to make her hiss.

"Ouch!" She tried to pull her arm free.

"Up ahead," Jellal said with a calm voice that differed from the way he handled her. She raised her head, scanning her surroundings with her magical aura when she felt the tingling sensation in her arms.

A group of people were making their way toward them when she saw a large man in a black short sleeve shirt, dressy gray pants and black boots.

"He's one of them," Jellal warned.

He gently tugged her to him and began walking the other way.

"We're not being discreet," Lucy responded back to him.

He ran a hand through his hair. "We're not trying to hide. We just need to act normal."

Her eyes shifted to him. "I'm not following."

"I don't know how to explain but they won't attack us here, right now."

She halted, causing him to stop. "They attacked us last night and now you're saying they won't do it again?"

"Not during the day when there's so much security around us." The heavenly body mage pointed to the corner of the street and Lucy made out guards from the royal court.

Instantly, she let Jellal guide her down the street while she kept her head down. The last thing the blond wanted was to capture their attention. Her last encounter with them didn't bring back good memories, although she insisted to the princess and her most loyal knight that she forgave them.

She felt him pulling harder on her hand as they walked around another corner and blending into a group of people she could assume were tourists.

They stopped in front of a building. Not having time to check out the sign, Jellal pulled her inside. The door noiselessly shut behind them.

"Well," she said to him when he finally let her go. She crossed her arms in front of her curvy body.

He smiled back at her. "Well?"

"What are we doing here?"

"Just buying some time."

"And then what?"

"We're going to follow your advice. Get out of Crocus," he simply replied while leaning against the wall. There was another door that led into the building, only there was a lock. The building must be residential, to keep outsiders like them out.

"And once we're out of Crocus, what's going to happen next?"

He lifted his head, the ceiling light angling on his handsome face, making the angles look sharper. The blond shifted her gaze away from him.

"Honestly, I didn't think that far but I might have to contact my guild and let them know about this situation."

What Jellal said made sense even though she didn't want him to expose the fact that he was with her.

"Can you tell me what exactly was your mission?" she asked him. She uncrossed her arms, letting them fall limply to her sides. She, too, leaned against the wall, sensing that they were going to spend a lot of time in the building.

"There have been reports of missing people, mostly girls as young as you. A dark guild has been traced to those missing persons and I was to take some form of action to stop them."

Her head lifted. "Are they the ones that attacked me?"

"Yes." He answered swiftly. His dark green eyes lowered to meet hers. Even with the modest distance separating them, Lucy still noted their difference in heights. She wasn't tall among the females in Fairy Tail. She used to wear small heels to add to her height but with sneakers Jellal made her feel very short.

"The men that chased us last night, you think they're associated with the men that were arrested?"

The blue-haired mage shook his head. "I dislike making assumptions, Lucy. We didn't confront them so their identities remain anonymous. However, they were chasing us and they're still looking for us."

She could see where his information was leading too. Whether they were part of the dark guild or not, they had their sights on her and Jellal.

"So there might be a good chance that we're not parting ways when we get out of Crocus?"

He glanced down at the ground. "I'm sorry, Lucy."

It was the second time he said her name.

"I... If we separate..."

"I can take care of myself. I don't need you babysitting me," she said with vehemence.

"I know," he said, suddenly staring intensely at her. The look in his eyes made her quiet down. "Lucy."

Again, he used her name and the way he said it sounded so perfect coming from him. It also had been a long time since hearing her name from someone other than her spirits. He pushed himself away from the wall and walked slowly towards her.

She flattened herself against the wall. Nervously, her eyes darted around her. He halted as if sensing her uneasiness. "Lucy."

He had to stop saying her name.

"I." He glanced down. His hands fisting and then unclenching. His teeth grinding together. Then he exhaled. "I want to stay with you."

"What?" The stiffness she felt in her body melted away by his confession. Had she heard him right?

"I want to stay with you," he repeated.

She started to laugh, not clearly believing her ears. Why would he or anyone else for that matter want to stay with her? Natsu and Happy left her to go on their adventures. The whole partner thing was a sham. The Fairy Tail members left Magnolia without protest. She was the only one left to rebuild the guild home but without a member, the structure was good for nothing. And then there was her father. He was so desperate to marry her off to whomever had money.

Tears spilled from her eyes and Lucy raised her arm to cover her face. Sobs escaped her mouth. She never expected to feel Jellal's warm and strong arms wrap around her or to feel his hot breath against the crown of her head. After that, everything else just happened on instinct.

OoO

The sight of her tears moved Jellal to no end. He recalled when he faced Natsu during the time he was possessed in the Tower of Heaven, he made Erza cry and Natsu beat the crap out of him. The fire dragon slayer was enraged that he hurt a friend. Even remembering the female members of his guild crying made him uneasy.

But he never reacted to them the way he did with Lucy. Seeing her break down due to emotional issues made him close the distance between them despite her discomfort. He embraced her, his lips brushing her hair before turning his head and resting his cheek on her crown. His hands rubbed soothing motions on her small back. He just let her cry.

His eyes fixed on the scene outside the window of the door while the blond sobbed against his chest. However, he felt an ache in his heart. The once vibrant blond had shattered before him. He could tell by her forced laugh, the desperation in her brown eyes, she was trying to keep herself together. He could relate to her because he was once in her shoes. Fortunately for him, he had his friends to help him recover.

This girl, no, Lucy was suffering alone.

And he found himself in a position of not wanting to leave her alone.

Her weeping quieted down and she pressed her hands against his chest to push him away. He slightly retreated, giving her enough space to compose herself. His hands dropped to his sides when her watery eyes raised to him. He'd never seen someone looked so vulnerable. Suddenly, she closed the space between them. Her hands reached for his jacket, fisting them in the fabric and pulling him down, he felt her lips pressed against his. His eyes widened while hers closed. His body stilling.

They remained in place. Him in shock. Lucy keeping her mouth on his. Slowly, she moved against him and finding that he couldn't deny her, he pulled her closer as their lips rubbed together. One hand cupped the back of her head. His other hand moved to the curve of her waist. He took over the kiss.

She smelled good like honey and vanilla. Her hair was soft under his fingertips and her skin was like silk. The hand at her waist moved to her back and then drifted up her spine. He heard her moan and felt when her body melted against him. He backed her up against the wall, caging her in. He broke the kiss, feeling her intake of breath. Her body shuddered against him, making his lips twist upward on his face. Then he turned his attention to her neck. He trailed hot kisses down the slender column. Her hands unclenched from his jacket to travel up his hard chest to his blue hair. She totally lost track where they were because she began to move sensually against him, her breathing turning into pants. He groaned low in his throat before pulling away.

"Lucy." He opened his eyes to see the haziness in her brown eyes.

He looked away to better calm his urges. It had been a long time since he... Jellal shook his head. When he glanced at her, Lucy's head was bent, her teeth biting her bottom lip. That lip, the way it tasted on his tongue. He blinked his eyes and shook his head again.

Once again in control, he gently put fingers under her chin and lifted her face until she was looking at him.

"I didn't mean to take advantage of you," he said. "I was only trying to comfort you when..."

"No." Her head moved side-to-side. More tears fell from her eyes. "I'm sorry for kissing you of all a sudden. I..." Her lips trembled and Jellal couldn't resist the temptation of her sweet mouth. He kissed her again. Feeling her beginning to respond, he pulled back and smiled.

"I don't mind kissing you again and again."

Her eyes widened, her mouth opening.

Laughter burst out of him at her astonishment and he pressed her against him as he shifted them away from the wall. They stayed together for a minute, him wiping the salty moisture from her pretty face before moving away from her. Lucy self-consciously brushed her fingers against her face. Then she fixed her clothes. He watched her secretively, liking the flushness of her cheeks and her swollen lips.

When she glanced at him, he turned his attention to straightening his clothes. "Are you ready?" he asked her.

"Huh?"

"I think we spent enough time hiding in here from that man," he replied to her while raising his eyebrows.

"Oh... yeah." It was amusing how she tried to play cool.

He opened and held the door for her. The moment she exited the building, he followed after her. He easily caught up to her, his eyes scanning each store. "How about we get something to eat?"

Her face brightened and he held back a chuckle.

"What would you like to eat?" he asked her.

"Pizza!" She clapped both hands together.

"Then pizza we're going to have." That made her beam.

They walked into a store that sold what Lucy wanted. Seeing her giddy warmed him. Her smiles were infectious, causing his lips to stretch across his face. They strolled to the counter and Jellal made an order.

"Don't pay the bill without me," Lucy said to him. "I'm going to use the restroom."

He nodded his head, pretending to agree. She excused herself and headed to the back of the place where the bathrooms were located. He scanned the pizza joint, to make sure no one watched them. He'd been cautious while walking in town with her and the pizza place was small enough that he could spot anyone who appeared out of place.

Moving to a secluded area of the store, away from people sitting nearby and making sure to keep his distance from the restrooms, Jellal took out an earring communications lacrima from his pocket. Slipping it onto his ear and using his magic, he called to the other person with a similar device.

"Jellal," the feminine voice spoke clearly to him.

"Erza," he returned.

"I... it's been awhile."

He smiled while shaking his head. "We spoke three days ago."

"W-wow, feels longer."

He chuckled low in his throat. Seeing a woman looked toward him from a few tables away, he raised an arm on his table, a hand passing through his blue locks. He kept his hand in his hair and his head down. "I'm calling to report the mission."

"So everything is done?" she asked getting down to business.

"The status of the mission remains unknown," he answered honestly.

"Do you need help?" she questioned immediately. "Say the word and Fairy Tail will have your back."

"I couldn't ask you to spare a few of your mages, not when the Grand Magic Games is a day away."

"I don't mind. We are already here in Crocus."

His eyes widened at her comment. Lucy wouldn't take lightly to their company. "Since when did you guys get in?"

"This morning."

He had to get Lucy out of town if she didn't wish to be found by her former guild members. "No, I can manage."

His super hearing heard a door opening in the direction of the restrooms. Jellal ended the conversation. "Can you contact Meredy for me?"

Before Erza could question him further, he disconnected the earring communications lacrima and discreetly put the object in his pocket. He pulled out jewels to pay for the pizza when he heard the blond said, "No you don't. Not this time."

His lips curled upward as she hurriedly walked to the counter, her had reaching in her jeans' pocket for the currency to pay for their lunch. He didn't protest when she grabbed the box of pizza and made her way back to the table he occupied.

"After this, let's leave town," he suggested.

She was already digging into the open box for a big slice of pizza. "Okay." Another smile displayed on his face as he watched her happily enjoying her food.

OoO

Elsewhere, two dragon slayers were making their way around town. One had blond spiky hair and the other had raven hair. Two adorable felines were perched on their broad shoulders.

"How long has it been since we had we've been here?" the normally quiet raven head unusually asked his friend who was the guild master of Sabertooth.

"Two years," the other man casually replied. He placed his hands in his pants' pockets as he strolled leisurely through the streets. His hooded eyes lazily taking in his surroundings. "Although," he added, "This year will be a lot more entertaining with Fairy Tail participating."

"Yes, Fairy Tail does have a way of brightening everything," the first male responded.

The blond dragon slayer paused in his stroll. He clenched one fist and smacked it into his awaiting hand as his facial features contorted to excitement. "This time I can't wait to show that fire dragon slayer how much I've improved."

His companion didn't say anything but the feline on his shoulder quickly agreed with him. "Yeah you will Sting!"

Sting felt his face softened at his exceed. He nodded in agreement and continued to walk. His friend followed quietly behind him. Sting slowly scanned the area around him until a particular sight caused his blue eyes to widen and his body to still. Even his friend next to him stopped. Surprise flickering on his usually calm face.

In the distance both dragon slayers saw a tall blue-haired mage holding a door open for a blond female. But she wasn't just any attractive blond female. She was the celestial mage that went missing after Fairy Tail disbanded.

"That's the celestial girl who's always with the fire dragon slayer," Sting pointed out.

"And that's Jellal Fernandes with her," the dark dragon slayer named Rogue said, but there was a questioning look in his eyes. "What is he doing with her?"

"Let's find out." Sting, feeling his exceed shift uncomfortably on his shoulder, put a reassuring hand on his little friend. Rogue heard his cute little cat say something too and he calmly quieted the feline. Then both dragon slayers along with their exceeds went to investigate the situation before them.


	6. Chapter 5

**A/N:** Thank you all for your support so far, I really appreciate it. Please enjoy this chapter. :)

* * *

Erza Scarlet sat on one of the available stools in a bar, The Sun and Moon, Crocus. Watching the other Fairy Tail members having a good time, a smile split across her pretty face. It had been a long time since the members got together to participate in a fun event. They all suffered greatly in the past two years so to see everyone drinking, eating and singing merrily made Erza's heart swell.

"Here's your strawberry cake, miss," the bartender interrupted her thoughts.

She nodded at the man, her face turning serious. Taking her fork, she sliced into the piece of cake. But before she could enjoy the sweetness of her snack, she felt something tingling along her thigh. She reached to take out an earring communications lacrima from her pants' pocket -which was one of the rare days she decided to wear pants- and put the device to her ear.

There was only one person who would be contacting her. "Jellal."

"Erza," he returned.

Hearing his voice overwhelmed her. There was a flash of them as children in the Tower of Heaven in her mind. "I..." If she didn't know any better, her eyes were getting wet. Blinking and wiping briefly at her eyes with her hands, she tried to answer him again. "It's been awhile."

"We spoke three days ago."

Okay, maybe she didn't recollect herself. "W-wow, feels longer."

His chuckle vibrated through her earpiece and Erza felt herself smiling again. Jellal rarely smiled or laughed so it was good to hear him being happy. Then his tone lowered. "I'm calling to report the mission." Their friendly chat was over.

"So everything is done?" she asked him. Fairy Tail along with the other magical guilds had been getting reports of tourists going missing in Crocus. Most of them were young females. For some reason, Erza had a nagging feeling about Lucy. The celestial mage also disappeared suddenly and although not in Crocus, Erza couldn't help but connect the two. She didn't reveal to Jellal that many of the tourists were around Lucy's age and possessed similar physical features as her. She wanted to query the job, which was why she sent her best friend. If anyone could make results, it was him.

"The status of the mission remains unknown." This was a first for Jellal.

"Do you need help?" Eyes from another person landed on her. She lifted her head to see Laxus, the lightening dragon slayer, sipping a glass of whiskey while eyeing her from across the bar. Apparently, the blond was listening in on their conversation. "Say the word and Fairy Tail will have your back."

"I couldn't ask you to spare a few of your mages, not when the Grand Magic Games is a day away," her best friend said.

Laxus put his drink down on the counter, his fingers tapping lightly on the rim. He inclined his head to her, giving her the okay -if she needed him and a few other mages to help out her friend, they were ready. "I don't mind. We are already here in Crocus."

"Since when did you guys get in?" Jellal asked her. He sounded surprise.

"This morning," she answered him.

"No, I can manage," he said tersely. Erza blinked. She wanted to ask him if he was sure when he suddenly came out with, "Can you contact Meredy for me?"

She was about to question him further when his device disconnected, leaving her hanging onto nothing. For Jellal to ask her to contact his second in command in Crime Sorciere meant something did happen. He needed help.

Immediately, the lightening dragon slayer got up from his stool and approached Erza with a steady calmness. He took a seat next to her, his frame seeming too big compared to her smaller one. He faced the other members, acting his casual self. The new guild master of Fairy Tail was grateful for his placidness. She didn't want to alert the others, especially Natsu, Gray and Gajeel about something being off. Those three males were all hyped on proving who was better than who. They would insist to help out Jellal.

She kept her back to them and picked up her fork. She proceeded to eat, looking unfazed that the intimidating blond lightening dragon slayer -with his large brown jacket hanging from his broad shoulders- was sitting next to her.

After munching on her snack, which she forgot to add was quite delicious, she set down her fork to slice another piece.

"What of the news on Jellal's mission?" Although Laxus listened into the conversation, he wanted direct clarification from her.

"He says the status of his mission remains unknown."

The big muscled man crossed his arms against his wide chest as he leaned back. He waited patiently for her to explain.

"I requested Jellal for a special mission here in Crocus. You see people, tourists, are missing. Most of them are teenage girls. With the Grand Magic Games coming up, I wanted Jellal to find the perpetrators responsible and put an end to the case but he hasn't finished the task."

"And you might be thinking that other females will go missing during the event?"

"I want Crocus to be safe. I don't want a repeat of two years ago." The last time Fairy Tail competed in the Grand Magic Games, the event was being held to suck in enough magical power to open the Eclipse Gate and let dragons into their world. Since the requip mage became a guild master -which she did so reluctantly- she promised to save as many innocents lives as she could.

"That's understandable," Laxus thoughtfully said.

"Maybe we should do as he wishes. We should contact Meredy and see what she advises us to do next."

"Yes, that sounds good," the lightening dragon slayer agreed. He unfolded his arms, letting his hands fall on his legs. His fingers began drumming a rhythm on his knees.

She craned her neck over her shoulder, her eyes quickly scanning the room. She was looking at the other dragon slayers in particular due to them having such good hearing. Natsu was too busy having another argument with Gray. Gajeel was in a shadowy corner, munching on metal. He focused his attention on a blue haired bookworm reading her book and ignoring two males from her team -Shadow Gear. And Wendy was at another table with Lisanna and Carla. The young girl was laughing at one of their jokes.

"I'm going to the back to contact Meredy," Erza said as she turned her head to her plate. She finished what was left of her snack before rising from her stool.

"I'll go with you," Laxus said, unexpectedly taking her by surprise. In the past he left the Fairy Tail members to deal with their own problems. He'd undergone a drastic from then to now.

"The others will notice," Erza replied while raising an eyebrow. Even standing, she was about the same height as him and he was only sitting on a stool.

"We can play it off as planning a new routine for the Grand Magic Games," he offered as he too raised his pale eyebrows. His lips turned upward in the corner, softening the harsh angles on his face.

Erza never had the urge to roll her eyes but being with Laxus had her feeling different. "Like they would ever believe that."

"A guild master, an S-Class mage. To them we'll look like we're discussing something important." He shrugged his broad shoulders, his muscles rippled under his shirt from the brief movement.

She did roll her eyes. "I thought we were playing it off as them not figuring out why we're going to the back."

The lightening dragon slayer suddenly stood up and stretched his arms above his head. A few heads turned his direction but he paid no attention to them. Instead, he reached into his pocket, pulled out some jewels and left it on the counter. The bartender came to get the money. "It includes her order too," he said, again shocking the new guild master.

His attention moved to her. "Don't sweat it."

She blinked at him as she watched him go. He paused to motion with his eyes for her to follow him.

Erza looked to the people around them. In a way, he was right. No one glanced their way. They were too busy chatting, drinking and eating happily with their friends. Some of them got drunk to the point they were dancing in their own world like Cana.

She glanced back at Laxus to see him slowly making his way to the hallway. He was deliberately killing time, waiting for her to catch up to him. She followed his trail while at the same time acting like she didn't know he was going somewhere in the back.

No one from Fairy Tail suspected a thing. They came to enjoy the games and to have fun so she was going to let them have their entertainment.

OoO

Lucy touched her lips as she stared at the reflection of herself in the mirror of the bathroom. Jellal had kissed her. He actually kissed her! Her cheeks flushed at the mental image. And she acted like a wanton! Her hands slapped hard against her cheeks. She closed her eyes and focused on taking even breaths.

She never meant for someone to get close to her, for someone to put down her guard. But the heavenly body mage was unpredictable. He was quiet, his handsome face mostly serious -making him hard to read. Plus, she hadn't interacted with humans for some time. She chose Loke or Virgo to handle those uncomfortable situations and they did it with no qualms.

"What am I thinking?" she whispered to herself. She removed a hand from her face to fist over her chest, right over her heart. Even while controlling her breathing, her heart continued to pound faster than normal.

Opening her eyes, her cheeks looked red, her lips swollen and her blond hair was a mess. Did everyone see her looking like she tossed out of bed with a hot guy?

No! She shook her head fiercely, her hands pressing roughly against her cheeks. Everything was happening too fast. She was in a cheap hotel room alone and the next she found herself in the pizza shop with him.

"He's going to tire of me soon. They all do," she whispered. Natsu, Happy, Gray, Erza, Wendy, Carla, Levy and the list went on.

She shook her head again and slapped her hands on the rim of the sink. She stared seriously at her reflection in the mirror. "Why should I care about Fairy Tail? They betrayed me. The only ones that matter are my spirits. I owe them."

They saved her when she thought she was all alone, desperate for death to relieve her of living with pain and shame.

Lucy had done things she wasn't proud of but by choosing to venture out on her own, she was searching for answers to make things right. Jellal was a little distraction. He would leave like the rest of them. Until then, she was going to play her part, pretend that everything was okay.

She strained her lips, to appear as if she was smiling. Quickly, she fixed her hair, undoing the hair holder, combing through the long length of golden hair with her fingers and retying it into a side swept ponytail.

Glancing at herself one last time in the mirror, she inhaled a deep breath. "Ready, set, go." She opened the door from the bathroom and went into the hallway. At the end of the hallway, she could make out Jellal's profile -him leaving a table and moving to the counter where the cash register was located. His hand holding jewels. She walked briskly to him. "No you don't. Not this time." She passed him while gathering her own jewels to pay for their meal.

She saw his alluring lips curling upward on his good-looking face and she forced herself to focus on taking the pizza. She turned her back to him while mentally recollecting herself. Then she walked to the table she last saw him at.

"After this, let's leave town," he suggested. She liked his offer. Lucy opened the pizza box and happily delve for her slice. Her dark eyes darted to his smiling face, her lips stretching freely across her face. She didn't have to act being glad. At the moment she was contented.

OoO

Something wasn't right. The heavenly body mage felt like he and Lucy were being followed the moment they left the pizza store. His magical senses went off the radar and his eyes shifted to a now bright-eyed Lucy. She would never admit to being joyful. Food brought out a different side of her. He didn't want to ruin it.

Discreetly, he took lead in their walk. He chose a direction opposite of getting them out of the city. He needed to gather information -how many were following them, get a sense of their magic and their magic level. He quickly discerned that they were not part of Fairy Tail. Yet their magic felt slightly familiar.

He frowned while keeping his head down so his long blue bangs covered his forehead. He didn't want to alarm the celestial mage that something was strange. His hand took hold of her wrist at one point as they were passing some vending stalls. He kept them in crowded areas, hoping to shake off their pursuers.

Sometimes the blond girl stopped to admire trinkets or vivid clothing from the vending stalls. Other times she stared wide-eyed at the flowers in the garden square. But he couldn't keep the masquerade for long. She was starting to notice that he didn't keep to his word so he did the last thing that couldn't be their giveaway. He turned them into an alleyway, pulling her deep enough into it and then blocked the exit. The other side of the alley led to a dead end.

"You said we were leaving town. Why aren't we there yet?" The blond girl glanced around her. "Why did we stop here?" Sweat was rolling down her neck and face from the heated day. A part of him felt kind of bad for not disclosing the fact they were being followed.

Well, now was the time to tell her. "We're being followed."

Her beautiful brown eyes widened as he watched with a hint of sadness, her happiness fading away. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"I wanted us to act as natural as possible."

She spun on her feet and walked over to the side of the building. She leaned against a brick wall. "Talk about trust," she muttered.

His heightened senses from his kind of magic made it possible to hear her remark. "We're in this together, remember?"

Lucy snapped at him. "But you didn't tell me! You just assume that you can handle everything, that since you're a guild master you can do whatever you want, whenever you want. You're tough, you can handle your own battles. Why consult with weak me?" Her eyes shot daggers at him and he found himself entranced. In her anger, she looked stunning. But beyond her anger, there was pain. A type of pain he knew too well; loneliness.

He had to tread carefully. "You're not weak, Lucy."

"You clearly missed the Grand Magic Games I last fought in. I was beaten up twice."

"Those were unfair battles."

"Every battle won't be fought in honor. People fight dirty to win." That was an assessment he wouldn't disagree with,

"I like to think every battle fought earns you experience. Whether you win or lose, you learn a little more about yourself."

"You mean like learning that no matter how hard I try to train myself, I can never get into an inhuman level of magic like you, Erza, Natsu, Gray, Laxus, Mirajane. Do I have to keep going?"

He shook his head. "Lucy. You're different."

"Yes, I am. I clearly cheated to get where I am."

He blinked. "Lucy?"

She lifted her head, until her eyes were looking up at the sky. Her laughter echoed in the alleyway. "People from Fairy Tail, they can rely on themselves, their own magic to fight other mages head on. My magic did't allow me to do that. I had to summon celestial spirits and on top of that order them around on the battle field. Do you know what kind of person that makes me?"

There were tears in her eyes as she mocked laugh through her pain. As much as it hurt him to see her wounded, he wanted to hear what caused her so much pain and grief. "I felt like I had the cheapest type of magic. I coward behind them like I coward behind Natsu, Erza and Gray. I let them fight my battles because I couldn't fend for myself. For the longest while, I blamed myself. I still blame myself for bringing them misery."

She sank down to the ground, her hands wiping at her wet face. "But my spirits, they won't leave me. They refuse to abandon me."

And then she was laughing at herself while crying at the same time. "What a pathetic mess I am. I'm sorry." After she just kept apologizing while weeping. A flash of light came from beside him and he saw an orange haired male dressed in casual clothing and shades. Magic, her magic radiated from his form. This person or from what he detected was not human. He must be one of her spirits. The male walked to Lucy and stooped to her level.

"Lucy?"

"Lea-ve me al-one, Lo-ke," she said in between her sobs.

"What kind of spirit would I be to leave the person I love alone?"

Jellal's eyes widened comically at the declaration. Was there a relationship between spirit and master?

She swatted at him. "Stop messing around."

The orange haired male named Loke moved his head side-to-side. "I kept saying it and I will say it again, I love you."

"Stop it!" The blond girl raised her hands to hit him but he caught them with ease.

"Please, Lucy, we all love you. There is no other person we want in our lives, no other person we can call family."

His words made her cry harder. He let her go and she wrapped her arms around legs. She hid her teary face behind her legs.

The heavenly body mage stood aside, letting Lucy's spirit calm her down. But his attempts seemed futile. Then Loke looked to him and Jellal lifted his hands in surrender. "I'm sorry." He felt responsible for putting Lucy in a dismayed state.

"It's not your fault," the spirit said while sadly shaking his head.

"But I..."

"One day she was going to have a breakdown." Her spirit fluidly rose to his feet, giving Jellal a sense that Loke was a fighting type of spirit. He lowered his glasses from his face revealing hazel eyes that silently pleaded with the heavenly body mage to look after her.

Jellal nodded and watched Loke disappeared, only leaving a trace of Lucy's magic. He glanced at the end of the alleyway, toward where they came from to make sure the trackers didn't find them.

"Lucy," he said slowly while deliberately moving toward her. He lowered himself to the ground so that one knee touched the floor while the other knee was in the air. "Lucy, your magic is beautiful. It reminds of the sunshine, both warm and bright."

His words seemed to calm her. She wasn't crying anymore. "Your magic can light up this whole alleyway. Besides, you can never be alone. All your spirits love you. Your magic shines so brightly because of their love for you."

A watery brown eye peered at him through her fingers. He held out his hand, a gentle smile forming on his face. "I'm sorry for not telling you earlier about our trackers. Believe me, I didn't tell you because I think you're weak. Not that I will ever think such a thing. I didn't tell you because I like seeing you smile."

Her whole face peered by the side of her legs. "You should've tell me. My smile shouldn't matter."

"But your smile does."

She glared at him causing him to raise his hands in the air.

"Next time I'll tell you."

Then he held out his hand to her. She eyed his hand suspiciously before taking it.

"Let's move on. We stayed here too long."

She didn't say a word.

They were about to walk out from where they entered the alleyway when Jellal noticed her freezing. Her eyes squinting, one of her hands touched the side of her hip. He looked in the direction of her view but he didn't see anything.

"Oh no," she whispered. "They're coming."

"Who is?" he asked. His body stiffening. His magic began buzzing against his skin.

"I don't know exactly who they are but I felt their magic before. It feels like dragon slaying magic."

It couldn't be Natsu, Wendy or Gajeel. They were the dragon slayers Erza said that Lucy worked with on missions. Laxus was another dragon slayer in Fairy Tail whom he teamed up with for the Grand Magic Games. It had to be dragon slayers outside of Fairy Tail. He didn't get much time to think as a bright light temporarily blinded him.

A pink haired maid -the same one he saw earlier in the morning- bowed in front of him and Lucy but she addressed her master. "Punishment Princess?"

"No, but if you don't mind, please can you make a tunnel that leads from here to the other side of that wall?" The blond girl pointed to the brick wall on the other end of the alley.

"Yes Princess." The maid walked to the barrier and suddenly she began spinning around in a circle. Her body twisted faster, reminding him of a tornado and then her body drilled into the ground, making a hole.

The celestial mage grabbed his arm and led him to the hole. He couldn't help but ask, "Is that safe?"

Lucy beamed at him. "The safest you'll ever get."

Her words were enough to assure his next move. She was the first one to jump into the hole and he tagged after her. It was better if they could avoid coming across anyone they know.

OoO

Erza and Laxus entered what might have been a storage room from the looks of the barrels and crates piled on top of one another. The walls were wooden. There were a couple of small windows which the sunlight peeked through, giving Erza enough light to see. She took a seat on one of the crates. Laxus chose to stand while his arms crossed over his muscled chest. He raised his blond eyebrows at her.

Ignoring him, she used her magic to connect to the earring communications lacrima. Hopefully, Jellal had given Meredy one too. She waited for a response on the other end but no one replied.

"Perhaps she didn't get one or she doesn't have time to reply," the guild master said while shrugging her shoulders.

"Try again," he ordered.

It was Erza's turn to raised her eyebrows at him but she did as he instructed.

Again, she sent her magic to the lacrima when another sweet voice answered. "Hello, Jellal, is that you?"

"No, I'm Erza from Fairy Tail."

"Oh Erza, how are you?" The other girl made polite talk.

"I'm alright and you?" she asked back. The lightening dragon slightly coughed at her and she lifted a hand in the air to motion him to wait.

"I'm fine thank you."

"Well, that's good to hear."

"Yep." Meredy sounded cheery.

"Actually, I'm contacting you because Jellal told me too."

"Jellal." The way the other girl said his name, Erza could hear the change. The friendliness left her tone. "Is he okay?"

"That's the thing." Erza rubbed the back of her head with a hand. "His mission remains unfinished but he insists that he doesn't need help. He just said to contact you."

"That means he does need assistance," Meredy confirmed quickly.

"Then-."

"Where is his mission?" the other girl interrupted her.

"Crocus."

"I'm coming and I'll bring the other Crime Sorciere members with me."

"Okay," Erza replied. "Is there any way Fairy Tail can help?"

"No, don't worry about the mission. I'll help him, the others will want to see what's happening at the Grand Magic Games."

Erza almost fell to the floor from Meredy's reply. "Okay."

"Good luck at the games!" the other girl cheered, her mood quickly changing again.

The guild master laughed a little. "Thanks."

Before she could disconnect the earpiece, she heard Meredy say, "Don't worry about Jellal, Erza. He'll be fine."

And with those final words, the guild master looked up at Laxus who sauntered across the room to the doorway. "Laxus?"

He halted under the doorframe. "Well, you heard her. They don't need us right now," he said with his back to her.

"I guess you're right." She sounded unsure.

"Look, you're new to the whole being a guild master. As one, you can't do everything and you can't be at many places at once." The lightening dragon paused. "What I'm trying to say is you have us, Fairy Tail. When the time comes, we'll support you so have some trust in us."

Erza was struck speechless and he didn't linger for a response. He just left her alone to mull.


	7. Chapter 6

The moment Jellal and Lucy crawled out the tunnel, the blond asked for the maid to fill the hole. The pink haired spirit nodded her head stoically and caused a bunch of rocks and dirt fall down the hole. Not wasting time, the blue-haired male took the blond's hand and began running down the alley.

"Where are we going?" Lucy shouted behind him. He paused, his hand gripping her wrist tightly.

He examined his surroundings. "We have to get somewhere far."

She tugged, her wrist wiggling in Jellal's grasp. "Let go."

"I can't."

"Jellal, let go."

"They're going to find us."

"I said let go." Her voice became firm.

He did as he was instructed and turned toward her. The celestial mage's face was serious as she crossed her arms over her busty chest.

"How did they know?"

"Lucy..."

"How can they find us so easily? You said we were going to leave Crocus."

He had to be careful what he said next. "What are you saying?"

She uncrossed her arms and walked toward him. She dabbed a finger at his chest. "You could have told them about me."

"Lucy."

"Don't Lucy me."

He raised his hands. He said his words slowly. "I won't, I wouldn't do anything..."

Her hand fell to her side as she interrupted him. "I heard that so many times before."

"Those dragon slayers were not same ones from your guild."

"But they sensed me and that means they can tell the others from Fairy Tail." The celestial mage made sure to look him in the eyes. "I meant what I told you in the beginning. I'm not returning to Fairy Tail."

"And I respect your decision."

She crossed her arms once again. "Do you really?"

"Yes."

The brick wall shuddered, making the blond pivot on her feet. Her brown eyes widened. Jellal acted quickly. He grabbed her arm and dashed in the opposite direction.

"Why are they after us?" she shouted as she let Jellal lead her down the streets. They maneuvered easily through the crowds of people on the streets.

"We sensed them," he yelled over his shoulder.

They continued running around. Jellal passed through the streets where they were large groups of people. He pushed his way through some of the groups, apologizing for both of them. But by making contact with other folks, he was getting rid of their scents. Eventually, the other dragon slayers would lose track of them because their scent would be on everyone else.

He slowed down, moving into jog, recalling there was an inn nearby. The blond behind him was panting heavily for air but she didn't complain about being tired. He admired her for that.

"There's a place we can stay for tonight." He took lead once again.

She didn't respond, so he took her answer as a "yes."

He passed through the last group, opening glass doors that led inside to a lobby area. He kept a firm grip on Lucy's wrist as he made his way to the front desk to order a room for them.

OoO

Jellal had ordered a small room with one large bed -being that the other rooms with two beds were occupied for the night. It was quite a luxury compared to sleeping in a filthy alleyway. And she was grateful for the bathroom.

Lucy stood in the shower and let the water wash away the dirt and sweat. She tried not to think about the possibility that the male she was traveling with rattled on her. A fact she recalled Erza telling her was Jellal didn't lie. After regaining his memories, he was consumed by guilt for the things he did while possessed, that he tried his best to atone.

So did that mean he was serious about staying with her?

Her fingers went to her lips. The kiss they shared, would he do it again?

She shook her head. There had to be some motive – a reason for him to travel with her. Perhaps he was working with Erza. Or he trying to persuade her to return to Fairy Tail.

"It's too good to be true," she whispered and then laughed. "Yes, Jellal won't want to stay with me. Not if he knew the truth."

Turning the knob to take the water off, the blond reached for the towel on the sink. She patted her skin dry and then wiped fog from the mirror, above the sink, so she could get a good look at herself. The past two years, she noted that her face didn't change much. She still appeared youthful with her shiny blond hair, smooth skin and full pink lips. Only her hair grew longer, reaching her hips if she let it loose and her brown eyes lost their natural spark.

Her eyes went to her lips. Biting her bottom lip with her teeth, the pink faded from the hard pressure to return a deeper pink. Maybe she should test him. See how much he could take before he showed his true color. A secretive smile curved on her lips. Mentally calling her maid spirit, the pink-haired female appeared in a flash.

"Princess, do you want to punish me?" she asked in a monotone voice.

"No," Lucy answered. "But I was wondering if you have an outfit, something simple yet sexy?"

"Oh," the maid said. Her blue eyes twinkled.

"I don't mean one of your revealing celestial outfits."

Virgo almost looked disappointed.

"A form fitting tank top and tights might do."

"That's a good choice," her loyal spirit answered.

"Thank you."

The maid disappeared and then reappeared with the clothing she requested. With a grateful smile, Lucy dressed herself while Virgo returned to the celestial world.

She walked out of the bathroom, dressed what she liked to consider feminine, since she spent most of her time wearing comfortable clothing. The navy-blue tank top and the black tights hugged her form, clearly showing her curves. When Jellal saw her, he quickly stood up from the bed. Without saying anything, he stiffly and hastily walked into the bathroom, closing the door behind him.

Lucy would've stomped her foot in frustration, but she saw a hint of desire in his dark green eyes. She wondered if she could elicit the same feeling that he had in the building when he kissed her.

Moving to the window, she pulled aside the white curtains. The sky was beginning to darken, indicating the end of another day. Tomorrow, the Grand Magic Games would begin. Fairy Tail, Sabertooth, Blue Pegasus, Lamia Scale and the other magical guilds would start competing to see which guild was the best. This year was going to be interesting because Fairy Tail was the most prominent guild.

Her eyelashes swept down, and her hands clenched into fists. A heavy pain settled in her chest.

She needed to think about something else, anything but the backstabbing, betraying guild.

Anything such as... Food! The thought popped into her mind. In a blink of an eye, Virgo came back from the celestial world with steaming hot food.

"Virgo," the celestial mage said with astonishment.

"You might be hungry," the spirit retuned with a formal bow.

"I can eat this food but what about Jellal? He can't celestial cuisine without consequences."

"Yes, he can eat this food. I made this food in Earth Land before I transported it to you," the maid reassured her with her face remaining passive. "Punishment?"

The blond moved her head from side-to-side. "No."

Just then, Jellal opened the door and walked into the room with gray sweats and a clean white shirt. His blue hair was wet and dishevel. Immediately, her eyes landed on the red tattoo above and under his right eye. He didn't seem bothered by her spirit's presence.

"Great, just what I was thinking," he said with a small smile. "Food."

Lucy looked away from him while not trying to blush. Even dressed casually, he still looked good.

"Well, the pizza wasn't enough," she remarked.

He sat down on the bed. Lucy bit her bottom lip.

"Even after eating half of the whole pizza?" He raised both his eyebrows.

She looked, no, more like glared at him. "What are you trying to say about my eating habits?"

"Nothing."

She didn't believe him. "I'll have you know that all that running we did made me hungry."

He lifted his hands in the air. "I like the way you get happy when you eat your food."

What he said should have been an insult, except he used the words "I like." And those words stunned her. It had been a long time someone other than her spirits complimented her.

She glanced at Virgo, who had yet to leave the room. The pink-haired spirit witnessed everything with amusement dancing in her dark eyes.

"You may go, please," she politely dismissed her spirit.

"Thank you," Jellal added to Virgo, catching Lucy off guard. Normally, people disregarded her spirits but from his genuine smile and the fact that he was looking at the pink-haired spirit while talking to her made Lucy want to shed tears. He was treating Virgo as if she was one of them, a person.

The maid bowed to both of them before disappearing.

"Thanks," the blond replied as she made her way to the bed. Virgo had a cart with their food right beside the bed.

"For what?" the blue-haired male questioned her while checking out the delicious cuisine. The maid had outdone herself with the dishes she made for them. There was tender roasted steak, mash potatoes, corn and broccoli. On the side, Virgo made sure to include carrot cake. They even had juice to drink to go with their meals.

"For being nice to Virgo," Lucy whispered. She sat on the bed across from Jellal.

Apparently, her comment made him pause in eating the mash potatoes. There was a funny expression on his face.

"Why won't I thank your spirit? She brought food for us." The way he said his words, it was as if it was natural to show gratitude to her spirits. The people she dealt with in the past didn't treat her celestial spirits like they were humans. Her friends were viewed as slaves. Lucy decided to keep her spirits a secret. She chose not to interfere if they were dealing with humans, so they would never know her friends were actually celestial spirits. It was easier for Virgo and Loke to get away with interacting with strangers than Capricorn or Aries.

She glanced down at her lap, her fingers twining together. "Not everyone is kind to my spirits."

"Why?"

"They think because I'm a celestial mage, it's ridiculous to befriend my spirits. They think that my friends are tools."

"But you're not like the other celestial mages."

Her eyes lifted to his. He put a mouthful of mash potatoes in his mouth and began chewing. The corner of his lip lifted upward.

She didn't know what else to say to him, so she began eating her meal too.

They sat in silence as they ate. She was looking down at her plate and he, well, she didn't keep his actions in mind. Instead, she felt self-conscious. The outfit she wore showed a little too much skin since she got used to covering up. And the idea of testing him seemed ludicrous now that she thought about the outcome. He wasn't treating her any different like before.

Their kiss played in her mind and Lucy felt the cool metal of her fork in her hand. She tightened her grasp on it and willed herself to forget the intimate scene.

Her eyes raised to him, a long breath escaping her parted lips when she caught him staring at her intently. "What?"

"Nothing," he said. He put his empty plate on the cart along with the eating utensils.

Swallowing, she tried to change the subject. "Is there by any chance we're going to be leaving this place tomorrow?"

"That might be hard considering that the games begin tomorrow."

"Actually, I was thinking the magical guilds will be caught up preparing for the games, so we can use the distraction to get away."

"Yeah, we can but there'll be more security around."

Lucy bit her lip. With more security, the royal guards were going to be on watch. She hoped that she didn't have to deal with them again.

She glanced at him and her breath caught in her throat. His dark green eyes roamed over her figure, making her flush. Nervously, she rubbed her thighs together.

"Umm... uhh... we should probably go to bed," Lucy said feeling a little flustered. Her teeth dug into her lip.

"Lucy." He had a way of saying her name, so sweetly. "We're already in bed."

"You know what I mean!" she quipped while jumping up in a standing position. It was a good thing her plate was on the bed and not on her lap.

He chuckled lowly. "No, I don't."

"I mean we need to sleep!"

"And how are we going to arrange that?" He emphasized the bed with his hands. "There are two of us and one bed."

Crap! She didn't think about their sleeping arrangement.

"Uh...I don't know." She didn't want him to sleep on the floor, knowing they slept in the alleyway the night before. Since the bed was big enough, he could sleep on one side and she would sleep on the other side.

Amusement flickered in his eyes.

"You sleep on one side and I sleep on the other side."

"What if you come into my personal space in the middle of night?" he asked. His eyes grew brighter and she could see that he was barely holding back his laughter.

"I was going to ask the same thing!" she shrieked back. She back pedaled until she found herself falling on the mattress.

The heavenly body mage guffawed at her reaction.

"Jellal!" she screamed his name. He took her plate, fork and knife from the bed and put them back on the cart. Then he moved over her. His laughter vanished and was instantly replaced with a seriousness that took the breath out of her.

This was a different side of Jellal, one she didn't know how to handle.

He gave her a wicked smile as he leaned forward, his elbows supported his weight on either side of her body. She felt the dip in the mattress deepening as his mouth touched the bare skin of her shoulder. Lucy closed her eyes, her breathing turning shallow by a simple touch.

She never experienced anything so exciting.

He pulled aside her strap and feathered kisses from her collarbone to under her chin. Her arms curved around him, her hands burying into the mass of his wet blue hair.

He groaned and then murmured, "Beautiful."

Lucy was about to say something when his lips reached her mouth. He nibbled on her bottom lip causing her to gasp. His tongue delved into her mouth and she moaned. The kiss felt like pure heaven.

Eventually, he had to pull back so they could both breathe. They were both panting heavily.

"Jellal," she whispered. Her hand went to caress his face.

His eyes closed at her touch, a smile tugging on his sensual lips.

"Shh, we have plenty of time," he said.

"But-." He opened his eyes and a finger pressed lightly to her lips.

"I know you must be tired. I know I am."

She wasn't tired. The kiss made her feel alive. Her body was still tingling all over.

The celestial mage shook her head and he chuckled, his chest rumbling against her breasts.

She gasped. Reading her facial expression, Jellal shifted next to her and covered them both with a blanket. Lucy felt disappointed, perhaps he was second guessing their intimacy. He moved until he was snuggling against her neck and the blond realized she was wrong. She couldn't help the smile or the redness that blossomed on her face.

"We have plenty time to talk tomorrow. For now, we solved what we're going to do if we get into each other's personal space."

Lucy cheeks definitely heated up more with his remark. She held still for him, waiting for him to say something else. Time seemed to stretch until she glanced down at him and saw that his eyes were closed. His breathing evened out. He easily fell asleep. Finally giving into his warmth, she fell asleep too.

* * *

 **A/N:** I hoped you enjoyed reading this chapter. Also, I really appreciate all the support toward this fanfic. Thank you all for taking the time to read and either choosing to follow or favorite. And an extra thank you for reviews because the feedback I get is very helpful. :)


	8. Chapter 7

Lucy woke in the dark. An anxious feeling crept into her limbs, making her sit up instantly on the bed. Her eyes darted around her. Someone else was in the dark room with them. She could hear the movements, little soft whispers here and there. Fear, a crippling one like two years back, overtook her. She couldn't move or speak. She just stared into the darkness, waiting for something to happen.

Jellal, he was right next to her. If she could move her hand an inch, she could wake him. But her fingers refused to twitch. Opening her mouth, silence greeted her.

 _Please, let this be a nightmare_ , she thought. _Please, not like before. Anything but that._

A figure moved in front of her. A bald-headed man with unnaturally sharp teeth came into her sight. His steps toward her were slow and deliberate. His hands were stretched out and she saw a pair of shiny handcuffs in one of his thick hands and her bunch of keys in the other.

"Come on beautiful, let's play a bit," his leering words murmured over her.

She tried to scream, to jump, to summon her celestial spirits although he held her keys. Virgo or Loke would definitely come to her aid.

"Lucy! Lucy!" Another voice screamed over and over again. She was violently shaking, and the sneering bald-headed man faded.

She woke up, blinking her eyes. The light from the ceiling blinded her that she wiped her eyes with the back of her hands. Instantly, she sat up and looked around the room. No one was hiding in the shadows, no one was there except for them.

It was just a nightmare.

"Are you okay, Lucy?" His arms encircled her.

"Yeah," she breathed. "I just had one of those... I just had a nightmare," she said, trying to correct the error she almost made.

"It's okay. You're okay." His hands ran through her hair. Allowing herself a moment of peace, she simply enjoyed the security of being in his arms.

It felt like someone genuinely cared about her besides her spirits.

The day was beginning, a new one for the both of them. But the celestial mage didn't want to dare hope that something changed in their relationship. She thought was she was reading more into what they had because Jellal was such a nice guy.

"We better get going. Today is the Grand Magic Games," he said into her hair. They were skipping town. She didn't want to give Fairy Tail a chance of finding her.

"You want the bathroom first?" he asked her.

"Yes," she whispered.

"Go." Was she reading more in his tone, or did he sound like he didn't want to let her go? She retreated from his arms. His dark green eyes glinted at her before he turned away.

"All right the bathroom is yours."

Her cheeks tinted with color as she stood up and dashed into the bathroom. Shutting the door behind her, she spent the rest of the morning getting ready.

A couple hours later, after they ate breakfast from a coffee shop, Jellal pulled her aside. People, mostly tourists from other parts of Fiore, crowded the streets. Their cheers and colorful clothes added merrily to the major event. The blond would have loved to watch the magical guilds fight from afar but being a part of Fairy Tail didn't give her the chance to live a normal life.

They were too much ghosts from the past that haunted her.

"When are we going to leave?" she asked.

"Hang on," he said. His fingers tightened on her wrist.

"Why?"

"Are you going to keep questioning me?"

"Maybe."

He rolled his eyes at her. "Something doesn't feel right."

"All more of a reason for us to get out of here. Let the magical guilds or royal knights handle it."

"We can try to get out of here but it wouldn't matter if the problem follows us out of Crocus."

"So are you saying we stay?"

"Lucy, I need you to concentrate. Can you do that?"

She just stared at him.

"Please."

That word, he knew how to use it. Sighing, she closed her eyes and let her body relax. It was all about focusing on different people's auras. Each one gave a different vibe.

"There are two of them," he revealed. "Can you feel them?"

She squeezed her eyelids shut. Her muscles tensed. After some time, she opened her eyes and shook her head.

"Try again."

"I can't."

"Please."

Her eyelashes drifted down. The heavenly body mage rubbed his thumb along her inner wrist and immediately, her breath quickened. A pleasant tingling sensation drifted up her arm and traveled throughout her body. Then the strain on her body lessened. Again, she could feel auras. Light, almost bubbly feelings surrounded her but, in the distance, she could feel coldness; unwelcoming ones.

Her eyes shot open.

"They feel like the ones from that night. The ones that attacked me," she said, hoping her voice didn't sound shaky as she felt on the inside.

"Damn it." She blinked. Jellal was not one to curse so easily.

"What are we going to do? We can't just stop off at the train station and buy two tickets out of this place."

"Most likely they may have more company waiting for us there."

The blue-haired male shifted in front of her, shoving her into a corner. He took her mouth with his. She felt him leading her body into a stone wall and pinning her there. He kept kissing her until she was out of breath. Then he quickly released her mouth, leaving her dizzy.

"Damn, it didn't work."

"Well, sorry my kiss wasn't good for you." She pushed against his chest. He didn't budge.

"No, not that. Feel with your magic. There's a new one with them."

Exhaling, she leaned her head against the wall and closed her eyes. Her skin began to tickle, almost to a point she felt like itching. The darkness was much closer than before.

She opened her eyes and ducked under his arm. There were three men with matching dark hair, faces and builds. They were dressed in rugged pants, dark red shirts, and they seemed to be smeared with dirt. People passed around them, not bothering to notice the men looked out of place.

"There are three of them not far from us."

"Damn it." She chanced looking at him and saw him watching her closely.

She averted her attention back on the men before she lost track of them. They parted ways. Two of them went the other way but another one was heading toward them.

"Quick, one is coming this way."

Jellal grabbed her arm so fast, she thought he might have dislocated her shoulder. They ran down the street, the opposite direction from where the other two men walked. They dashed past crowded shops and tourists.

When they finally stopped, the blond girl was heaving deep breaths and had to put her hands on her thighs to steady herself.

"What's going to happen now?"

Without warning, he pulled her to him and he backed her into the darkness of a doorway. She could only hear the sound of her harsh breathing.

"What?" she whispered.

"I don't hear anything. Do you?"

She shook her head, her blond hair swaying with the motion.

"Good," he murmured. His eyes darted to her mouth. Lucy froze. She could still remember the feel of his lips on hers. Why was she thinking of him in a sexual way while they were in danger?

Something was definitely wrong with her. Even now, her heart skipped a beat as his dark eyes wandered down her neck.

"Mama, look!" a little boy pointed out and both of them quickly jumped apart, like they had been caught stealing candy.

"Hun, shush, leave them alone," the mother gently chided her son. They passed them. Jellal turned and started to pull her down the road again. They traveled a bit, making sure to stay within the crowded areas.

"We have to avoid any of the inns for now. The magical guilds may be staying there."

"So we're running from bad guys and we're avoiding magical guilds," Lucy said. "Cool."

"You see, being around you is fun." His dark green eyes twinkled.

"Welcome to my everyday life."

"I like it."

Her cheeks heated up by his compliment.

"Come on, let's go." He took her hand again and continued walking. The celestial mage noticed that he liked to hold her hand and she herself didn't mind.

Then kept trailing along the crowded streets when Jellal paused.

"There is a way we can get out of here."

"Really?" she asked. Her eyes shined up at him.

"Crocus is big but if we head down this street, make two rights, walk straight down a few blocks and turn left, we should be heading into the direction of the forest."

Liking the idea, she eagerly nodded her head. "Just lead the way."

"Okay." His hand reached out for her. Instead of him grabbing her, she put her hand in his own and together they strolled down the merry streets of Crocus.

OoO

"How long?" she asked. Her body near stumbling point. He found himself looking at her over his shoulder. She was so cute with her blond hair tied in a ponytail, a blue shirt and faded blue jeans.

"Pick up your feet, Lucy."

She walked or tried to and then she was falling down. He moved quickly, catching her. "I'm trying!"

Her brown eyes landed on him and he could see the fatigue. He had been used to sleeping outdoors, trekking through rough terrain, fighting on little to eat or sometimes with nothing to eat. He didn't know what she was used to, but he didn't want her to over exert herself. The dream she had in the morning, the one that swiftly woke him, worried him to no end.

He had been watching her when she thought his attention was on the people around him. When he had her focus her magic on the men who were after them, she couldn't pinpoint their location.

She was definitely tired.

"Ah! Did you see? There's the blue hair girl from Fairy Tail! Wendy Marvell!" Someone from the crowd yelled. "She's so adorable!"

A crowd gathered to where the person was.

His dark eyes landed back on the blond girl beside him. It took a fraction of a second before her eyes widened. Her head turned toward the group and her mouth opened. The fact that she wasn't acting hastily showed her wooziness.

He took action. He pulled himself in front of her, shielding her from the crowd. His arms enclosed around her hands as he shut his eyes. His blue hair could be observed by anyone but with the magic concealer over his tattoo, no one could claim him being Jellal Fernandes.

He waited. But he never took in consideration what the celestial mage would be doing with just her hands.

OoO

Why was she so exhausted?

They had been walking all over the place. They did a light run. Yet she was weary.

Then she heard a name. "Wendy Marvell." She panicked but there was nowhere to hide. She was out in the open and was about to be discovered until the heavenly body mage moved in front of her. His tall, muscular frame covered her smaller body. His arms rested on her arms, letting her know if she needed someone to lean on, he was that person.

Closing her eyes, she exhaled a breath and then leaned close to him. She held onto him. There was nothing between them. Molding her body against him, she marveled at the feel of his tight stomach against her hands. She could feel the rise and fall of his breathing and wanted to stay in the position forever.

At one point she brazenly explored the muscles along his abdomen and chest.

"If you keep doing that, I won't be responsible what happens next," he warned.

She smiled lazily and enjoyed being with him.

Then he turned around. His lips touched the crown of her head. "Come on, I think there's some place we can crash for a while."

"Not another alleyway, right?" she asked.

He chuckled. "Nope."

She could barely keep her eyes open as he led her somewhere else. All she could do was trust him.

An hour later, she was relaxing in a hot bathtub. Her muscles relaxed in the steaming water. Her head lay flat against the edge of the tub and she closed her eyes.

A flash of light signified that Virgo was in the bathroom with her.

"Princess, you must eat something sweet. Your magic level is far too low."

"Mmmm..." was she mustered.

"Princess, I brought a glazed donut from the celestial world. Please eat."

"Whawmmm."

She felt her mouth being opened and the sugar instantly melted on her tongue. Her eyes popped open. She could barely form words as the maid instructed her to chew slowly.

When she finished, the maid gathered her dirty clothes and replaced them with new clothes. "That was too close, Princess. Punishment?"

The blond shook her head. "I'm sorry." Her lips strained to smile. She hated to worry her celestial spirits.

"It's okay. I made it in time," the spirit said as emotion temporarily displayed on her face. "I had to stop big brother from popping in on your bath."

This time Lucy did smile. "Thank you."

The maid nodded her pinkish head and then disappeared. The celestial mage took her time with getting dressed in her night clothes. Perhaps, she was killing time because she was going to share another night alone with Jellal.

She inhaled and exhaled several times to control her beating heart. When she felt comfortable, because she couldn't hide in the bathroom forever, she walked out wearing a dark pink tank top and a blue and white striped pajama bottoms. Her feet were bare.

Walking to a cart, she smiled.

"Delivery from your celestial spirit," Jellal said.

"Yep, she's the best," Lucy said as she smiled. She truly loved Virgo.

She uncovered the lid and saw pasta with meatballs and toasted buttered bread. She took one meatball and tossed into her mouth. She closed her eyes at the delicious taste.

Hearing a noise, she opened her eyes to see Jellal staring intently at her.

"What?"

"What do you mean what?"

"There's no time for this. How about we eat?"

"It's my turn for the bathroom, remember?" His teasing tone made her look back down at the cart. Her toes curled at the sound of his low chuckle.

Then he went into the bathroom, closing the door softly behind him. She lifted the lid on the cart and began eating her food. In fifteen minutes, the blue-haired male walked into the room. He was dressed casually in a white shirt and gray shorts.

Lucy bit her lip. He was toweling drying his hair when he tossed the wet towel on a chair. His blue hair was pushed away from his face, the water making it look darker than it was. His eyes narrowed on her, giving him a dangerous look. Some drips of water fell on his white shirt and she could see the clear imprint of his muscles. She let herself enjoy the view.

"What?" he asked her.

Her eyes jumped to him. "Nothing." She bit her lip.

He moved toward her, his eyes glittering. He walked with a slowing type of ease that gave a hint of danger. Lucy scooted back on the bed, her thighs hitting her breasts.

"Uhh... Umm..." She was a stuttering mess.

He stopped and tilted his head. His lips curving upward in a sensual smile.

Her breathing hitched. Forget about sleeping.

There was a foreign magical vibration in the air, one she never felt before. It broke the spell between them. He walked across the room and disappeared into the bathroom. "Hello, Jellal here."

Another voice, a feminine one she couldn't place answered.

"What?" she heard him audibly.

"No! She's here. I swear, she's here. I don't think it will be wise to contact the others as yet. Got it. Bye."

"Who was that?" she asked carefully. Did Jellal betray her?

"Remember the job I was assigned."

Slowly, she nodded.

"Well that was Meredy and it appears your name was mentioned for being kidnapped and held for ransom and Fairy Tail is the one who has to pay up."

* * *

 **A/N:** Thank you for reading as always. I hope you enjoyed this chapter. I made sure to add a lot of Jellal and Lucy moments. Please don't forget to review. Your comments are very inspirational. Thanks. :)


	9. Chapter 8

A pink haired maiden walked through the streets of Crocus. Another tall figure walked beside her. It was hard to remain inconspicuous with their hair color and from the clothing they wore. Everything about them screamed mages. People seemed to skirt around them, yet their eyes followed their movements. The young woman didn't feel bothered, she knew that Cobra was behind her, keeping the people at a distance. He liked to be alone and could tolerate only a few people. The air around him intimidated others.

They were on a mission. The other members from their guild, Crime Sorciere, had scattered. The poison dragon slayer and Meredy's mission was to find the whereabouts of Jellal and then report back. The young mage decided to keep Cobra with her for his efficiency for reading people's minds. If anyone could read out the darkest minds, it was him.

"Where are we going?" he growled out. He didn't like to talk either, if he didn't have to. The pink-haired woman smiled. She gave little orders on what they were doing. Jellal's mission had been vague.

"Why don't you read my mind?" she suggested.

"Because you think of some weird stuff."

She turned to look up at him, her eyebrows raising. "But Sorano says it's the best way to keep you from reading my mind."

"That b..."

She smiled and shook her head. "If she's here, she would kick your ass."

"I'll like to see her try."

"Aww, we both know you'll lose."

"You wish." Cobra acted like Sorano and the other members of Crime Sorciere didn't matter to him but they did. He liked to act tough.

She stopped at a bar. The place was already crowded. Tourists and citizens of Crocus were sharing their happiness by drinking alcohol.

"Can you read their minds?"

"Mostly they're betting who's going to win this year Grand Magic Games," he answered.

"Do you know whose going to triumph?" she asked. Fairy Tail was the talk around town. After was Sabertooth and Blue Pegasus. But Fairy Tail drew in the crowd for their outstanding performance two years ago and the way they saved Crocus from the dragons.

"No. I could read people's minds but I can't see the future."

She waved her hand into the air. "I was just asking."

He knew when he was being dismissed. She walked inside the bar called Heaven's Wane. The place where she took a seat, the people hurried away from her. Their faces showed uneasiness not over her but her companion. She sighed. Cobra relaxed in his seat next to her. The bartender came to them instantly. He tried not to visibly shake while he took their orders.

To keep their everything simple, the pink hair maiden order beer for them.

The bartender rushed to get their order, relief settling over him to be away from them for a moment.

"You can stop intimidating them for now." She needed information, which was why they were seated at a bar. It was the perfect area to catch up on the action going on in Fiore.

"Fine," he grunted.

Two glasses of ice cold beer were pushed in her direction. She reached into her dress pocket and pulled out jewels. "Keep the change," she said with a bright smile.

Briefly, the bartender returned her smile but then he flinched at her companion's stare and he moved on to the other customers.

"Cobra."

"We're not here to flirt Meredy."

"I wasn't!" she quickly denied.

His expression turned serious.

"I was being nice." When he didn't look convinced, she added, "Really."

He swiveled in his chair. His hand reached into his coat pocket to pull out a bottle of liquid. The pink haired maiden never questioned what was in the bottle but she could assume it was poison, seeing that he consumed poison being a dragon slayer. Jellal mentioned to her that dragon slayers could eat their element as fuel. That meant Cobra could consume posion. Fairy Tail's Natsu could consume fire and Gajeel could consume metal. Sabertooth's Sting could consume light and Rogue could consume darkness.

Their magic was pretty interesting.

"Whatever. We're here on a mission."

She didn't need to be reminded. She rolled her eyes at him and left him alone. She pulled her drink, pretending to sip, as her dark green eyes took in the people around the room. Some of males were drunk. Their eyes were on her but they thought better to approach her, thanks to Cobra's lack of welcome.

"Do your thing," she whispered so only he could hear.

Taking in the noise, he closed his eyes. His face relaxed. Meredy took her to cue to lean back, her elbow planting on the bar table behind her. Her fingers curled around her glass. The coolness of the glass comforted her.

"Interesting," the poison dragon slayer said.

"What is?"

"The group of males by the back entrance spotted a blue haired guy with a blond girl earlier. They've been chasing them around town."

"Really?" Jellal was running around with a girl. That was new considering he and Erza decided to stay friends. She thought he would swear off females since Erza was special to him and things didn't work out between them.

"Even more interesting. The blond female is believed to be Lucy Heartfilia."

"You mean the Celestial Mage from Fairy Tail?"

"Yeah."

Meredy was well aware that Cobra and the other Oracion Seis had a past with the celestial mage.

"But she disappeared a while ago."

"It appears she was and now she's running around town with Jellal."

"That Jelly." She liked to refer him as such since he reminded her of blueberry jelly.

He chuckled lightly while folding his arms across his chest.

"Any more information."

"The guy with the green hair," he pointed out. "He's at the other end of the room, seated with four other males. He looks uncomfortable."

Meredy's dark green eyes darted to the location. "He knows more information about Lucy. A little more than necessary."

"Then we target him."

"Right."

A plan ran through her mind that Cobra easily understood. He would create a distraction while she singled out the green haired male. From there they would get their information. Cobra smirked while he easily rose from his seat.

"What kind of lame ass drink is this?" he threw his glass on the floor near one of the ruffian's foot. The big man turned on the poison dragon slayer, his black eyebrows touching on his face.

"What the hell? You're going to apologize for that," he said getting onto his feet. His big friends followed his action.

"Make me." He took Meredy's drink and threw it at another group of men. They too got up from their seats.

"You take care of yourself," she whispered the words for him to hear. Then she raised her hands into the air. "I have nothing to do with this, fellows."

They reacted, all of them hurling towards Cobra. The maroon haired male welcomed them by throwing his fist in the air. The whole place broke out into a fight and Meredy discreetly made her way to the green haired guy who sat in his seat, shell shocked by all the fights.

She smiled as sat down on the chair next to him. Her hand passing through her long pink locks. "You don't mind me sitting here? I feel much safer here by your side."

"Uhh..." he stuttered, looking for a good way to speak. "Y-you c-c-can."

She lightly touched his shoulder. "Why thank you. You're smart not to be fighting."

"R-really?" He looked at her with hope filled eyes and she could see how young he was. He was a teenager, probably sixteen.

"Well yes," she said. "They're fighting over nonsense."

"I-I guess you a-ar-e r-right."

"You know I am." She leaned into him. Her finger lightly traced a pattern on his shoulder. "How about we go somewhere more private?"

He swallowed, nervousness showing clearly on his face. The pink haired maiden felt a little guilt for tricking the young teenager but if Cobra said he knew information about Lucy and she was seen in town with Jellal, she needed to find out what was going on. "O-okay."

Her smile brightened her whole face, causing him to blush. She elegantly held out her hand to him, which he took. Together they stood up and headed out of Heaven's Wane.

OoO

All the Fairy Tail members gathered by the hotel they were staying for the Grand Magic Games. Erza planned that they meet a little before midnight due to the games beginning exactly at midnight two years ago.

Her dark eyes shifted to the different members. She tried to plan accordingly, picking certain people for their strengths and qualities that could help a team. Unlike Master Makarov who picked his teams with ease, Erza pulled an all nighter to choose teammates.

Her task wasn't easy. The only guide she had was her experience for the maze from the previous game. The team needed a leader, someone with a commanding presence but at the same time people looked up to. That person needed to know how to stay calm during a crisis and know how to keep everyone else in check.

Erza picked Laxus for the job.

The next person had to be the brains behind the operation. It was a tough choice between two of the smartest people in their guild, Levy and Freed. Considering that Freed would gladly fight beside Laxus, the guild master chose him. His rune magic was a plus.

The next group of people were fighters. Natsu, Gajeel, Juvia, Gray, and Wendy. Together, their magic was diverse. They would could cover each other weaknesses.

"Erza," Levy called her. The guild master blinked her eyes. "Everyone is here."

"Good." She turned around and saw that all the Fairy Tail members were waiting for her next move. It was close to midnight, the time of the first day for the Grand Magic Games.

Then a lacrima rose into the night sky and a little animal, resembling a bear appeared as a see through image.

"Welcome, my friends, to another year of the Grand Magic Games," the little animal said, getting everyone to cheer. When the applause died down, the strange animal spoke. "My name is Teddy, as in Teddy Bear, and I will be your host for the next few days. And now let me introduce to our first task as many guilds, over twenty, will be competing to earn the first five spots. Yes, you heard right, my friends. Five spots. And it begins with a maze of riddles."

Teddy was going over the rules when someone stumbled upon Erza's group. The young boy swaggered and then fell down, distracting the members of Fairy Tail. The guild master was going to help him when she was beaten by Wendy and Juvia.

"Are you okay?" the small blue-haired girl questioned the stranger. His clothes were a little dirty and dishevel, his green hair was a mess and his skin was pale.

"No, he's not okay," another voice said. The woman came out of the shadows, her pink hair and beautiful face made everyone gasp.

"Meredy?"

"Erza."

"This teenage boy has some interesting news for you." She pointed to him.

"What can it be?"

Erza's eyes narrowed on the boy whom Wendy and Juvia were now holding up.

"Tell them," Meredy ordered.

"About what?" he asked, his head lolling to the side.

"What you told me about the blond-haired girl, about Lucy Heartfilia."

The members of Fairy Tail froze. It had been a long time since they heard someone with an actual lead to their beloved friend.

"Oh, my master kidnapped her," he said like he was talking about the weather despite his drugged like state.

Shock wasn't a word to describe their feelings.

His head dropped forward. "And my master wants you to pay, that is if you want her back alive."

Erza couldn't stop Natsu, Gray or the others from pouncing on the boy.

OoO

The moment the boy told Fairy Tail everything he knew, Meredy excused herself and pulled out the communications lacrima to contact Jellal.

"Did you think it was wise for the boy to tell Fairy Tail about the kidnap? We usually gather more information," the poison dragon slayer said from the shadows.

"They have a right to know since it was Erza who sent Jellal on a solo mission to stop a very dangerous guild."

"But if she is with Jellal like the rumors say, then the boy is lying."

Meredy smirked. "My thoughts exactly. I just have to check in with Jellal."

And that was exactly what she did.

OoO

"What?" The shock on Lucy's face made him pause. Jellal acknowledged that he couldn't keep her in the dark about his mission but he still couldn't fathom how the dark guild used her. He turned away from her, making sure she didn't see his face darken. The dark guild knew who she was. If they did, Lucy was no longer safe.

He thought she was a random person they were going to attack.

"We have to leave here first thing in the morning," he said, giving her a choice to disagree with him. However, things were getting too serious.

"Yes," she said, conceding with ease.

He let out a breath he didn't know he was holding. "Lucy." He paused again. He was uncertain how to tell her his next train of thought. The celestial mage had her reasons for not returning to Fairy Tail. "I will need to tell Fairy Tail they don't have you."

"No!" she quickly protested. "You can't tell them anything about me!"

"I won't tell them you're with me, Lucy," he responded swiftly. "I'll them I investigated and I discovered they didn't kidnap you."

Her brown eyes widened. "You are willing to lie for me?"

He blinked. He didn't think he was lying. More like he was protecting and respecting her wish. "If you don't want to go back to Fairy Tail, I understand." Because he comprehended better than anyone what it was like to want to be separated from everyone else. He was stuck inside his body for many years, witnessing the misdeeds that were done to innocents. When he was able to take control of his body, he couldn't find the willpower to face those people.

But now, he did as he stood in front of someone who he also hurt in the Tower of Heaven.

"Yes," he answered.

Her eyes got watery. "Why?"

"Lucy..."

"You just met me days ago and yet you're willing to go so far as to lie for me?"

She stepped back from him. "You don't have to protect me. I can fend for myself."

He was losing her. If he didn't act the right way, the woman he saw under the façade she pulled of, would disappear forever.

"Lucy, that night the men attacked you, I was on mission to stop them once and for all. I came by you on chance. Now, they know who we are."

"Then it makes more sense we go our separate ways. If we do, you can tell Erza how you know they don't have me."

"And if we part ways now, it gives them a greater chance of finding and attacking us. We do better as a team."

"No."

She was stubborn. "I'm better off on my own." Tears rolled down her cheeks. "I did fine before." But he realized she was putting up a front. Lucy might want to have nothing to do with Fairy Tail. She might want to leave him but she was doing her action because she cared for them. In her own way, she was trying to protect them.

Erza was right. Lucy didn't have a mean bone in her body.

It was one of the things that attracted him to her. Her selflessness.

He sat down on the bed and watched her pace the floor. He could tell she was working herself in a mental state, blaming herself for everything, no doubt.

"There are wanted signs all over the place for me," she said after some time. She wiped away the tears from her face. Jellal wanted to hold her in his arms, to comfort her but he held himself back. Right now, she wanted to be strong, to feel like she was in control of the situation.

"Fairy Tail has been looking for me for years. They might have well as found me." Was she giving in? She sat on the edge of the bed next to him. Her teeth sank into her bottom lip. He was tempted to lean down, to nip at her bottom lip.

"Lucy," he said.

"Don't."

His lips tugged upward. "Don't what?"

She turned to him, her eyes widening. She looked innocent and so tempting. He couldn't help but tease her a little.

"Don't do that."

"Don't do what?"

His eyes drifted down to her pretty pink lips. Her mouth opened as she inhaled a breath. "Don't look at me like that!"

He dipped his head, his lips mere inches from hers. "Or what?"

She could have backed away from him, but she didn't. He smirked just before he pushed her long blond hair to the side. He bent his head lower, his mouth touching her delicate neck. His tongue swept between his lips, tasting the sweetness of her skin.

"Jellal?"

"Relax Lucy."

"I..."

He ran his hands down her arms. Her hands trailed into his hair and pulled him up to her mouth. He could feel her fingers flex and relax while holding him. Their lips touched and everything turned magical.

"Lucy," he whispered as he nipped at her bottom lip. His hands moved down her back and then tugged her shirt up. His fingers played with her soft skin. He pulled her closer. She rolled her head back, to his delight, and exposed her long neck.

Her breathing hitched as his fingers slid over her ribs, upward until he cupped her. She moaned in sheer pleasure. He toyed with the tight bud and she began to move restlessly against hm. He took his time, his other hand reaching to caress her other breast. Then he bent his head and ran his tongue slowly across her throat.

She leaned farther back, her hands behind her, supporting her weight on the bed. Jellal rolled them on the bed so that Lucy was sprawled out under him, flushed, hot, and sweet to look at. He quickly removed her shirt and tossed it on the floor. Looking down at her, he took his time reveling the sight of her, trusting and ethereal.

"You're beautiful."

He dipped his head and licked at her silky skin. Her hands entangled in his hair, holding him to her as she moaned. She was vocal and he was learning, she was very responsive to his touch.

Deliberately, he stopped playing her breasts. He heard her whimper and a small smile crept on his face. He switched direction, his hands slowly moving to her legs. He pushed them a little wider, his fingers brushed over the tender spot just below her pants. He felt her tense and slowly moved his hand away until he felt her relax.

Then he trailed his fingers back to her sensitive spot, his head pulling back so he could gauge her reaction to his touch. Her brown eyes were hazy, her mouth open as her chest heaved up and down. A whimper escaped her when he stilled.

Blinking her eyes, she looked up at him. What he saw transfixed him. She looked at him, her eyes shining and hoping.

"Beautiful."

Her eyes closed and a smile formed on her pretty face. Taking the hint, he pulled down her pants, exposing her to him. He kissed her flat abdomen, sliding his hands to curve around her hips. Her back arched from the bed and her hands gripped his head as he bent to taste her sweet spot.

He slid one finger in her, enjoying her gasps and moans as she wildly moved her hips. She was tight, slick and hot. He placed two fingers inside of her, slowly circling and playing until he could tell she was closing into her peak. Raising his head, he watched as she climaxed and never in his life could he remember seeing anything so beautiful.

* * *

A/N: I'm sorry it's been a while. There's been much going on in my personal life but I haven't forgotten my stories. I ask for a little more patience as I am still trying to sort things in my personal life and thank you for your support.


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